Junk Hunter: Autonomous Rendezvous, Capture, and De-Orbit of Orbital Debris

** * * * * , The Junk Hunter mission concept is a space mission architecture designed to address the issue of removing space debris from Earth orbit. The Junk Hunter mission involves the removal of ten large pieces of debris from low earth orbit using ten small satellites launched from one launch vehicle. Each small satellite will be autonomously capable of rendezvous, capture and de-orbit of a large piece of debris, such as a dead satellite, and will consist of an existing de-orbit device integrated onto a commercial satellite bus alongside an innovative new device for debris capture currently being designed and tested by the REsearch and Development for the Capture and Removal of Orbital Clutter (REDCROC) senior project team at the University of Colorado at Boulder. The Junk Hunter mission target debris resides in an orbital range between 900 km and 1,000 km at an inclination of 82-83 degrees, a location having a high density of debris. Large debris, which can be continuously tracked on Earth and are 30 cm or greater in diameter, were chosen as the target because of the increased collision risk they pose. A single satellite debris capture architecture was chosen for this mission based on a number of factors including cost, simplicity, heritage components, and system redundancy. The Junk Hunter satellite consists of three major components: the LMx 9000 commercial satellite bus, the Gossamer Orbit Lowering Device (GOLD) de-orbit device, and the REDCROC debris capture system. The REDCROC system utilizes a deployable, inflatable boom structure supporting a mesh netting that can be secured around captured debris. The captured debris and Junk Hunter satellite can then be de-orbited, burning up upon re-entry and clearing orbital space of a large piece of debris.