Space debris presents a threat to orbital craft and must be located and, in some cases, removed. Lasers offer a number of benefits as a prospective method for doing this. These benefits include being able to operate at a distance from the debris and the ability to potentially make use of a effectively unlimited supply of energy from the sun. Lasers are also a well-understood and readily available technology. This paper presents a method for testing the effects of rotational velocity on the performance of a laser-based space debris removal system. Several tests are reported on. First, a test to characterize the importance of eliminating rotational velocity from debris is discussed. This test was conducted using a vacuum chamber, camera, remote trigger, high intensity laser, and simulated debris. The debris has been simulated using polystyrene. Its low density allows the effect produced to be more pronounced and more easily measured. Experiments were initially conducted using spherical simulated debris. A variety of irregular shapes were also tested, and the impact of the debris having an irregular shape have been characterized.
展开▼
