Of the 4 recent major breakup events, the FY-1C ASAT test and the collision between Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251 generated the most long-term impact to the environment. About half of the fragments will still remain in orbit at least 20 years after the breakup. The A/M distribution of the Cosmos 2251 fragments is well-described by the NASA Breakup Model. Satellites made of modern materials (such as Iridium 33), equipped with large solar panels, or covered with large MLI layers (such as FY-1C) may generated significant amount of high A/M fragments upon breakup.
An Analysis of Recent Major Breakups in the Low Earth Orbit Region
61st International Astronautical Congress (IAC) ; 2010 ; Prague, Czech Republic
2010-09-27
Miscellaneous
No indication
English
Collision Risk With Fragments From On-Orbit Breakups
British Library Conference Proceedings | 1999
|Simulation of satellite breakups
AIAA | 1986
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