Space Debris Engagement and De-Orbiting Device

The potential for damage resulting from a collision with orbital debris in Low Earth Orbit has become a significant danger to active, viable space missions. Policies intended to curb the debris growth rate are being overwhelmed by the rapid growth in small satellites.The preponderance of these satellites has a short mission life, often 12-20 times shorter than the expected time those objects will remain in orbit. A projected growth in small launch vehicles will compound the problem by increasing the quantity of rocket bodies in orbit. Rocket bodies are of particular concern because they pose a significant risk for fragmentation. MMA has successfully demonstrated an effective de-orbit system on a small launch vehicle upper stage. DragNET systems accelerate the orbital decay by 10x or more, but are designed to be launched with the object it will bring down. MMA proposes the development of a Space In-situ Deployed Engagement Re-Entry (SpIDER) dragNETTM or SpIDERNETTM that incorporates an atmospheric drag membrane with an autonomous engage and deploy capability that requires no power after deployment. This integrated system would enable a host satellite to identify a desired debris target and de-orbit the object, reducing the potential for collision and debris propagation risks.