Cleaning up the future with an autonomous space processor for orbital debris

Abstract

In 1957, the space race began with the launch of Sputnik. The Soviet Union and the United States fought to be the first to place an object in earth orbit, to maintain it in orbit the longest, and eventually to land humans on the moon. During this time of competition, nothing was done to remove the spent objects or man-made debris from orbit. In recent years, man has become interested in the environment and the effects of his actions on it. This environmental consciousness has begun to extend to NASA and the space program. NASA has realized that the amount of orbited space debris around the earth poses a threat to future manned and unmanned missions. It is for this reason that Dr. Kumar Ramohalli, at the University of Arizona, proposed the concept of an Autonomous Space Professor for Orbital Debris (ASPOD). This thesis is designed to be a summary of the ASPOD spacecraft, what has been done on it, and what still needs to be done.