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posted by mrpg on Sunday December 03 2017, @03:24AM   Printer-friendly
from the microscope-for-microdebris dept.

NASA sensor to study space junk too small to be seen from Earth

[...] NASA hopes to learn more about the dust-size microdebris orbiting Earth with the Space Debris Sensor (SDS), set to be attached to the International Space Station (ISS) following a 4 December cargo launch by SpaceX.

Using ground-based radars, the U.S. Air Force keeps track of about 23,000 objects larger than a baseball, so satellite operators can avoid collisions by maneuvering out of the way. But much less is known about smaller debris, says Brian Weeden, director of program planning for Secure World Foundation, a nonprofit focused on space sustainability, in Washington, D.C. The SDS will study objects smaller than a millimeter—and at high speeds they can still cause real damage, Weeden says. "If a satellite is in orbit for 10 or 15 years, those little abrasions can have an impact by degrading sensors or degrading materials on the satellite," he says.

NASA previously studied microdebris by inspecting the windows and radiators of space shuttles, which returned to Earth pockmarked with tiny impacts. "A detailed ground inspection could estimate what sizes the objects were that impacted it, but there's limited information you can get out of that," says Joseph Hamilton, an orbital debris scientist and SDS principal investigator at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

After it's mounted to the ISS, the new sensor will offer a better handle on the true microdebris population. The 1-square-meter detector on the SDS contains layers of thin sensors embedded within a mesh of fine wires. When debris strikes the surface of the SDS, it will break a number of these wires, which correlate to the particle's size. Damage to layers beneath gives a sense of particle speeds and trajectories. The back plate will measure the intensity of the impact, helping scientists estimate the object's density.

They should put it in front of one of the windows to act as additional space armor.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 03 2017, @03:32AM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 03 2017, @03:32AM (#604554)

    Just as you surmised, my quinklesack has once again emerged. How do you intend to ballot this?

  • (Score: 2) by takyon on Sunday December 03 2017, @03:39AM

    by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Sunday December 03 2017, @03:39AM (#604556) Journal

    ^^Use the SDS as a mouth protector!

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  • (Score: 2) by dak664 on Sunday December 03 2017, @01:59PM

    by dak664 (2433) on Sunday December 03 2017, @01:59PM (#604648)

    Congratulations, you just added a new word to Google's database!