Studying the Evolution of Warm Dust Encircling BD +20 307 Using SOFIA
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Maggie A. Thompson↗
Engineering topics
Jessica A. Arnold
Publications and source records attributed to Jessica A. Arnold.
An Overview of Ground-Based Radar and Optical Measurements Utilized By the Nasa Orbital Debris Program Office
For over 30 years, the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office (ODPO) has led the characterization of orbital debris (OD) too small to be tracked by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network (SSN), yet which may pose the greatest threat to human spaceflight and robotic missions. Measurements from specialized sensors, including ground-based radars and telescopes capable of detecting smaller objects, provide the foundation for developing statistical models to describe the current state and future evolution of the OD environment from low Earth orbit (LEO) to geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO). Since 1990, the ODPO has partnered with the U.S. Department of Defense and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory (MIT/LL) to collect data using the Haystack Ultrawideband Satellite Imaging Radar (HUSIR) – formerly Haystack – to characterize OD in LEO with a sensitivity of approximately 5 mm at 1000 km altitude. In addition, since 1993, the Goldstone Orbital Debris Radar, operated by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, has provided data on OD as small as approximately 2-3 mm for altitudes below 1000 km, some of the most sensitive ground-based measurements achievable at these altitudes. Recently, collaborations with the 18 th Space Control Squadron of the U.S. Space Force have also provided the ODPO with special datasets from the Space Fence to extend coverage below the historical SSN limit of 10 cm and to characterize individual breakup events in LEO. For GEO altitudes, the Eugene Stansbery Meter Class Autonomous Telescope (ES-MCAT), a joint NASA-Air Force Research Laboratory project that reached full operational capability in 2021, collects data on debris smaller than 1 m and provides coverage of debris in historically under-sampled high-altitude orbital regimes. This paper summarizes the radar and optical sensors utilized by the ODPO, their unique capabilities, and recent datasets and applications for statistical sampling of the dynamic OD environment.
Alyssa Manis↗
Radar Measurements of Orbital Debris from the Haystack Ultra-wideband Satellite Imaging Radar (HUSIR): 2020 to 2022
For over three decades, the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office (ODPO) has partnered with the U.S. Department of Defense and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory (MIT/LL) to collect radar data on the orbital debris (OD) environment. These radar measurements are used to statistically measure cm and sub-cm debris in low Earth orbit (LEO) that is used to define the current debris environment, monitor how the environment evolves, and support predictions of the future debris environment. Currently, the principal ground-based radar sensor used by the ODPO is the MIT/LL Haystack Ultrawideband Satellite Imaging Radar (HUSIR). HUSIR provides data on OD down to approximately 5 mm in size at altitudes below 1000 km. This paper will deliver an overview of recent HUSIR measurements of the LEO debris environment for calendar years 2020 to 2022. Process improvements will be highlighted along with results of interest, including the effects of the 15 November 2021 Russian direct ascent anti-satellite (ASAT) test on the defunct COSMOS 1408 spacecraft.
Jessica A. Arnold↗
An Overview of Ground-Based Radar and Optical Measurements Utilized By the Nasa Orbital Debris Program Office
For over 30 years, the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office (ODPO) has led the characterization of orbital debris (OD) too small to be tracked by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network (SSN), yet which may pose the greatest threat to human spaceflight and robotic missions. Measurements from specialized sensors, including ground-based radars and telescopes capable of detecting smaller objects, provide the foundation for developing statistical models to describe the current state and future evolution of the OD environment from low Earth orbit (LEO) to geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO). Since 1990, the ODPO has partnered with the U.S. Department of Defense and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory (MIT/LL) to collect data using the Haystack Ultrawideband Satellite Imaging Radar (HUSIR) – formerly Haystack – to characterize OD in LEO with a sensitivity of approximately 5 mm at 1000 km altitude. In addition, since 1993, the Goldstone Orbital Debris Radar, operated by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, has provided data on OD as small as approximately 2-3 mm for altitudes below 1000 km, some of the most sensitive ground-based measurements achievable at these altitudes. Recently, collaborations with the 18 th Space Control Squadron of the U.S. Space Force have also provided the ODPO with special datasets from the Space Fence to extend coverage below the historical SSN limit of 10 cm and to characterize individual breakup events in LEO. For GEO altitudes, the Eugene Stansbery Meter Class Autonomous Telescope (ES-MCAT), a joint NASA-Air Force Research Laboratory project that reached full operational capability in 2021, collects data on debris smaller than 1 m and provides coverage of debris in historically under-sampled high-altitude orbital regimes. This paper summarizes the radar and optical sensors utilized by the ODPO, their unique capabilities, and recent datasets and applications for statistical sampling of the dynamic OD environment.
Alyssa Manis↗