We have been conducting hypervelocity impact tests and numerical simulations in order to create Japanese design guidelines that protect satellites against a certain degree of impact by micrometeoroids and orbital debris (hereinafter referred to as M/OD). Certain members of JAXA, university researchers, computer analysts, and spacecraft manufacturers formed a working group to investigate the impact effect of OD on critical parts and bumpers, by conducting hypervelocity impact (HVI) tests and analysis. The knowledge acquired is now being reflected in spacecraft design.
We plan to continue and extend our experimental and numerical investigations covering a wider and more diverse range of conditions, in order to complete the guidelines at JAXA for the purpose of protecting unmanned spacecraft against impacts from space debris and micrometeoroids.
We introduce this standard describes the assessment procedure for verifying the validity of the protection design of satellites and probes (hereinafter referred to as spacecraft) against risks of impact with M/OD which are 1 mm or less in size and whose impact probability and impact damage is not negligible.
To ensure the spacecraft mission in the environment of the micro-debris and meteoroid, the system design must be coordinated during the progress of the development of the system from the Mission Requirements Definition Phase.
We have derived ballistic limit curves that can be used for combinations of structures and pro-tective materials that are highly requested by spacecraft manufacturers.