meteoroids and meteor storms: a threat to spacecraft? - nasa

George C. Marshall Space Flight Center

Meteoroids and Meteor Storms:

A Threat to Spacecraft?

i " V"// /I/" ..-

April 20, 1999

B. Jeffrey Anderson

Electromagnetics and Aerospace Environments Branch

NASA

Marshall Space Flight Center

Huntsville, Alabama, 35812

b.jeffrey.anderson@ msfc.nasa.gov

https://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=19990041159 2019-04-12T23:33:28+00:00Z

Meteoroid Flux in Geosynchronous Orbit


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METEOROil) MASS (grams)

# m-2 yr-1

200

1/100

1/1,000,000

Size

0.008 m

0.7 m

8 in

Hypervelocity Impact Phenomena

(;(',,/_,(' (" Itla/'.s'h(/ll ._,'I,,/,'_'l"li_'lu (",'m('/

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Courtesy .iohnson Space Center

Left: Flash x-ray sequence. Right: hnpact Damage to Graphite Epoxy Honeycomb_...{ 1/16" (5.82 rag) AI impact at 6.81 km/s on 24 layer MLI, M60J/954 Honeycomb, 0.040"/0.40"]...../

Impacts on LDEF Thermal Surfaces

(;c_,rgc C. Marshall Sl_a_c I"lik, ht ('cttn'r

ti_e_ .... bi_.ket backea by vapor deposited silver/inconel, paint (Exp. AOI'

i:)ecow,tea w_th 1_5 l.ti, ,-eflon film, silver & adhesive hacked (Exp. S 1005).

Impact Related Failure Modes


Cables Short

Cables Cut

Pressure Vessels (explode/unzip)

Structure Failure

Tethers Cut

Window Damage

Light Leakage

Electromagnetic Pulse (Meteoroids only)

Fluid Line and Heat Pipe Leaks

Operator Error

MSTI-2 (9/94) ??

CERISE (7/96)

SEDS-2 (after mission)

Shuttle (3 replaced / 2 missions)

Olympus (8/93) ??

Shuttle Threat

Zenith Hourly Rate (ZHR)


-30,000 km 2

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Meteor altitude is about 100 km.

"Standard" Observer.

Dark, clear sky

- Magnitude 6.5 stars visible.

Radiant of shower directlyoverhead.

Zenith Hourly Rate is thenumber counted per hour.

Background: ZHR-_ 8.

Typical "Shower": ZHR -_ tens.

Meteor "Storm": ZHR > 1000

For a 300 m 2 Satellite, stormconditions risk is ~ 0.00001 hr -_

from visible-size meteoroids.

Meteor Showers

Meteors

Sporadic Background

Quadrantids

April Lyrids

Pi-Pullids

Eta-Aquarids

Day Beta-Taurids

Perseids

October Draconids

Orionids

L _omcls

DatesGeorge C. Marshall Space Flight Center

ZHR Peak Comet

8

Jan 1-6 80

Apr 19-25 15

Apr 21-26 40

Apr 24-May 20 35

Jun 23-Jul 5 20

Jul 15-Aug 21 75

Oct 7-10 20

Oct 16-30 25

Oct 20-Nov 30 12

Nov 15-20 10

Nov 25-Dec 17 60

Dec 20-24 5

unknown

Thatcher 1861 I

Grigg-Skjellerup

Halley

Encke

Swift-Tuttle

Giacobini-Zinner

Halley

Encke

Tempel-Tuttle

3200 Phaethon (asterok

_i:uttle/

Orbital Mechanics of Leonid Generating

Comet Tempel-Tuttle

Courtesy of Peter i3rown, University of Western Ontario

1998 Leonid Visual Observations


Leonld 1998 ZHRs (Revised)

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• Mongolian Main Visual ZHRs

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Nove_::,Ller1998

, ........... Courtesy of W. Cooke and P. Brow..w,-"

1999 Leonid EncounterOrbit Analysis by P. Brown, UWO; Threat Analysis by W. Cooke, CSC Inc./MSFC


1965 1932 1899

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Encounter Velocity - 72 km/s.Peak Time = 02:20 UT on Nov. 18, 1999.

Estimated Peak ZHR - 1000 to 2000.

Width of Peak:_everal days.

F_T_,_,)roidMoss grams)

Less than 2 hours, but with enhanced activity for

1.E-04

Risk to Satellite Surfaces

1.E-07 1.E-06 1.E-05 '

3 E-5 - 5 E-6 ~ 9 E-7

1.E-03

i: ') ~ 1E-7 ~2E-8

Leonid Storm Mitigation Strategies


Robust Design (Minimize exposed cables and fluid lines. Assure

a well grounded system.)

Understand your system's weaknesses --- plan accordingly.

November 18, 1999, 02:20 UT + 3 hours:

• Orient satellite to minimize cross-sectional area and vulnerable

surface exposure to the stream.

- No problem for solar arrays since radiant is about 82° from sun.

• Notify system controllers of the enhanced likelihood of spacecraft

anomalies. Keep the "Starting Team" on duty.

• Minimize operational changes, software uploads, and complex

operations during this period.

• Configure to minimize high voltages on board.

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BACK UP SLIDES

Double Wall Penetration

Leonid Storm Peak


Assumptions:

Zenith Hourly Rate = 5000

Flux = 2.8e-19 (zhr) m-1.3lm-2s-II

One Square Meter at Random

Orientation, One Hour Exposure0.020 Inch AI Back Wall

0.25 Inch Spacing to Bumper

No Earth Shielding

Total Probability of Penetration

2.7e-5 [m "2hr -1]

Critical Mass = 3.6e-6 g.

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-5 -4 -3 : .110 10 10 10 2 10

MASS (grams)

Double Wall PenetrationTaylor-McBride Velocity Distribution


Assumptions:- 0.020 Inch AI Back Wall

- 0.25 Inch Spacing to Bumper

- One Square Meter, One Year

Exposure

- 1000 km Altitude

- Gr_3n / Space Station /

TM 4527 Flux

- Taylor& McBride Velocity

Distribution (3/97 Darmstadt

Conf.)

Total Probability of

Penetration = 0.026

.3xl0

.610

DOUBLE WALL PENETRATION MODEL

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-5 -4 -310 10 10 10"z

MASS (grams)

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Conclusions


Robust system design is the best protection against meteoroid

damage.

Impacts by small meteoroids are common on satellite surfaces, but

impacts by meteoroids large enough to damage well designed

systems are very rare.

Estimating the threat from the normal meteoroid environment isdifficult. Estimates for the occasional "storm" are even more

uncertain.

Common sense precautions are in order for the 1999 Leonids, but

wide-spread catastrophic damage is highly unlikely.

Strong Leonid showers are also expected in 2000 and 2001, but

these pose much less threat than 1999.

(;cor,_e C. Marshall Slm_c l"li,_ht ('truer

Results of half inch AI projectile impacting on 0.040 inch A1 plates at 6.1

km/s; 4 in. spacing; 0.125 in. back plate.

meteoroids and meteor storms: a threat to spacecraft? - nasa

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