Demisable Joints for High Altitude Break-up
As the number of manmade objects in Earth orbit increases exponentially, the sustainable use of space has been addressed by many authorities and communities around the world by imposing guidelines for space debris mitigation. United Nation member states defined the problem as a “concern for all nations”. The space sustainability is a multidisciplinary approach, which should be tackled both on the technology and legal level.
Our research at DLR Institute of Structures and Design addresses sustainability in space in the technical field. To achieve sustainability in space missions, it is crucial that we no longer pollute and we actively clean up the debris we are leaving behind. While circular economy solutions for space applications are currently in development, ESA Debris Mitigation Guidelines still suggest that Design-for-Demise is the preferred way to dispose of hardware at the end of a space mission as a quick solution.
We work on high-altitude break up of satellites upon their end-of-life by the help of demisable primary structure joints and topology optimized secondary structure elements. This approach suggests that the primary structure of the satellites disintegrate at a higher altitude than they would normally do and hence, have more time to burn away during the hypersonic atmospheric entry.
