CERAMIC SHIELDS FOR SATELLITE PROTECTION AGAINST HYPERVELOCITY IMPACT

IMPROVED SPACECRAFT SHIELDING CAN BE REALIZED THROUGH CERAMIC AND ADVANCED ARMOR TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER FROM MILITARY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS. A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THE MASS EFFICIENCY, THE EFFECTIVENESS AND THE COST BENEFIT OF SPACECRAFT SHIELDING WILL RESULT. OUR MATERIAL SELECTION, DESIGN AND OPTIMIZATION PROGRAM WILL FURTHER THE STATE OF THE ART IN ADVANCED SPACECRAFT ARMORS. INTERFEROMETRICS WILL DEMONSTRATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF A NEW CERAMIC SHIELD INCORPORATING ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES. THE CERAMIC SHIELD CONCEPTS ARE DESIGNED TO MAXIMIZE THE DISPERSION OF PROJECTILE MOMENTUM AND ENERGY. OTHER MEASURES OF EFFECTIVENESS INCLUDE TOLERANCE FOR THE EXTREME CONDITIONS OF PRESSURE AND TEMPERATURE CYCLING DURING LAUNCH AND IN ORBIT. PHASE I WILL YIELD A SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATE CERAMIC COMPOSITE SHIELD(S) AND AN ANALYTICAL MODEL ADAPTED TO ESTIMATE SHIELD EFFECTIVENESS. THE PHASE I SHIELDING DESIGN(S) WILL BE DEMONSTRATED AT THE SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE. TWO STAGE LIGHT GAS GUNS WILL ACCELERATE 1 TO 2 GRAM PROJECTILES TO TEST VELOCITIES OF 9 KM/S. SCALING TECHNIQUES WILL BE EVALUATED AND ADAPTED TO VALIDATE SHIELD RESPONSES. THE FINAL DESIGNS TO MEET EVOLVING REQUIREMENTS. THE PROPOSED SHIELD DESIGN TECHNIQUES REPRESENT AN APPROACH TO INCREASING SATELLITE PROTECTION WITH A CLEAR APPRECIATION OF COST AND WEIGHT CONSTRAINTS. THESE CERAMIC SHIELDS WILL PROVIDE ENHANCED PROTECTION AGAINST ARTIFICIAL DEBRIS AND ASAT WEAPON ATTACK. LIGHT WEIGHT ARMORS DESIGNED THROUGH THIS PROGRAM MAY ALSO FIND USE IN GROUND BASED APPLICATIONS.