Deorbit Object with Navigation (DOWN)

NASA seeks a low-cost and effective method to ensure that all future satellites have postmission disposal. NASA-STD-8719.14C states “NASA space programs and projects are to plan for the disposal of a space structure,,,at the end of their respective missions.” More than 8 million kgs of debris has accumulated in the near-Earth space environment and if the growth of debris continues, then collisions between satellites and debris will increase in frequency resulting in even more debris. The best way to prevent these future collisions is to remove satellites at the end of their mission. There currently is not a bolt-on non-toxic propulsion system that can provide both a means to deorbit the satellite and do so in a controlled way. What is needed is a smart bolt-on and productized propulsion system that uses autonomous navigation software to coordinate and manage a controlled deorbit. This new system would enable an entire constellation of satellites to be disposed of with minimal human effort. Benchmark Space Systems (BSS) is a leader in space mobility and has multiple commercial product propulsion solutions. BSS proposes to adapt our current bolt-on kits into a Deorbit Object with Navigation (DOWN) bolt-on kit utilizing our in-development ASCENT thrusters and our SmartAIM™ GNC control software for rapid, safe, and controlled disposal of satellites either with direct reentry or Earth escape. The utilization of existing BSS bolt-on kits to base DOWN on greatly accelerates this project. BSS will develop a conceptual design (TRL 4) of the DOWN kit family and perform a system-level analysis as a proof-of-concept to validate the design. Intended markets for this include any companies or agencies manufacturing satellites or developing missions that require controlled disposal at the end of the mission. Additional customers of interest include companies engaged in the building of a constellation of satellites such as Starlink or Project Kuiper.