The contribution made by orbiting solid rocket motors (SRMs) to the orbital debris environment is both potentially significant and insufficiently studied. A combination of rocket motor design and the mechanisms of the combustion process can lead to the emission of sufficiently large and numerous by-products to warrant assessment of their contribution to the orbital debris environment. These particles are formed during SRM tail-off, or the termination of burn, by the rapid expansion, dissemination, and solidification of the molten Al2O3 slag pool accumulated during the main burn phase of SRMs utilizing immersion-type nozzles. Though the usage of SRMs is low compared to the usage of liquid fueled motors, the propensity of SRMs to generate particles in the 100 m and larger size regime has caused concern regarding their contributing to the debris environment. Particle sizes as large as 1 cm have been witnessed in ground tests conducted under vacuum conditions and comparable sizes have been estimated via ground-based telescopic and in-situ observations of sub-orbital SRM tail-off events. Using sub-orbital and post recovery observations, a simplistic number-size-velocity distribution of slag from on-orbit SRM firings was postulated. In this paper we have developed more elaborate distributions and emission scenarios and modeled the resultant orbital population and its time evolution by incorporating a historical database of SRM launches, propellant masses, and likely location and time of particulate deposition. From this analysis a more comprehensive understanding has been obtained of the role of SRM ejecta in the orbital debris environment, indicating that SRM slag is a significant component of the current and future population.
An Analysis of the Orbital Distribution of Solid Rocket Motor Slag
2007 International Astronautical Congress ; 2007 ; Hyderabad, India
2007-08-24
Conference paper
No indication
English
An analysis of the orbital distribution of solid rocket motor slag
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