Removal of orbital debrisThe several methods presently identified for the reduction of orbital debris populations are broadly classifiable as either preventive or remedial, and fall within distinctive operational regimes. For all particles, (1) in the 250-2000-km altitude band, intelligent sweepers may be used; (2) for large objects, in the 80-250-km altitude band, orbital decay renders removal impractical; (3) for the 250-750-km altitude band, deorbit devices should be used; (4) for 750-2500-km altitude, OMV rendezvous for propulsive deorbit package attachment is foreseeable; and beyond 2500 km, (5) propulsive escape from earth orbit is required.
Document ID
19900030958
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Authors
Petro, Andrew J. (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Talent, David L. (Lockheed Engineering and Sciences Co. Houston, TX, United States)