MICROMETEOROID/SPACE DEBRIS DETECTOR (MDD) TEST AND CALIBRATION

摘要

The space debris and micrometeoroid environmentposes an increasing threat to operations in space due tothe escalating quantity of debris in orbit. Particleimpact detectors provide a low cost means to monitorand study this environment. EMI and OHB-System havedeveloped an impact detection system to be launched in2005 into a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of680 km. The experiment consists of an impact detectionsystem and a data transfer system. The detector utilizesthree independent systems to detect impacts and providecoincidence verification of an impact event, while thedata transfer system uses low-cost means to transferdata over an already existing communications networkto end-users via the internet. This paper presents themission, provides a description of the impact detectorand data transfer systems, explains the detectiontechniques employed, and discusses initial functionaland calibration testing setup, as well as outlines futureplans.