Space Debris Submitted to the Ilan Ramon Science Olympiad of the Weizmann Institute By the Ramaz Space Rams Ramaz Middle School New York, NY, USA Opening of the slide show

What is space debris? Spent motor casings Near dead spacecrafts Bolts Space Debris is: Near dead spacecrafts Bolts Rocket stages What space debris is Nuts Paint flakes

How much Space Debris is there? By the end of the year 2007 There were… and a total of… 8,927 man made objects 11,000 objects How much space debris is there officially tracked in space

How much space debris is there? Chart of space debris

Which countries have left the most debris? France China United States Italy 4310 4188 2631 362 PIECES OF SPACE DEBRIS These are the top four countries who have left the most debris as of 2007 Countries – space debris

Fragments of rockets make up 68% of all space debris Fragments – 68%

This is a window that was shattered by one tiny piece of space debris. END This shows the potential dangers of space debris during commercial space flights.

Throwing the debris at Mars There is a theory that if we throw the debris at Mars it will trigger global warming, and Mars will eventually become an inhabitable planet Ideas we originally considered to remove space debris… B. Throwing the debris at Earth This assumes that the debris will burn up in the earths atmosphere

WHY DID WE REJECT THESE IDEAS? We rejected the Mars plan because the debris probably will not pollute Mars enough to cause global warming. The idea to hurl debris at Earth was rejected because there is a slight chance that some debris will not burn up in the atmosphere and could cause injury and the destruction of property.

Our proposal to clean up space debris is… to launch two satellites to collect debris and bring it back to earth.

H o w w i l l t h i s w o r k? A space shuttle will bring the satellite into orbit. The model shown here will use its robotic claws to gather smaller debris.

Dimensions Cargo bay: Height: 14 m Width: 3.5 m Length: 3.5 m Airlock Opening: Diameter=2.5 m Satellite: Height=17 m Length=3.5 m Width= 3.5 Arm: Can extend to10 m long

Under normal conditions, the satellite should be able to collect and compress 6,000 pieces between one and ten centimeters of debris in one trip out of the shuttle and back. Specifics!!!!!!

The claws will put the debris into a compartment inside the satellite The claws will put the debris into a compartment inside the satellite. In there, all the debris will be compressed by a hydraulic compacter.

Which orbit will we send the satellite into? Here are the 4 satellite orbits… Elliptical Orbit Low Earth Orbit Medium Earth Orbit Geostationary Orbit

The altitude of the lower earth orbit is 300 to 1000 km. We will launch the satellite into the Low Earth Orbit because that is were most of the space debris is. The altitude of the lower earth orbit is 300 to 1000 km.

Lower Earth Orbit– Space Tourism Different Orbits in Space Geostationary Orbit Space Station – 342 km Lower Earth Orbit– Space Tourism All 3 of these levels have space debris

Where is the most space debris located? It is approximately at the height of 800 and 1,500 kilometers up in space. How much debris is in each layer

What are some private space tourism companies? Some private space tourism companies are: Bigelow Aerospace, Blue origin, EADS Astrium, Rocketplane, Space Adventures, Scaled Composites, The Spaceship Company, and Virgin Galactic.

How is debris a threat to space tourism? The space tourism shuttles will reach a height of around 122 kilometers. The debris orbiting in that area, the Lower Earth Orbit, could possibly damage the shuttles being sent off if they collide. This could prove dangerous for the passengers and the crew, as well as for the spacecraft.

Cost We estimate, that the satellite will cost around 350 to 400 million dollars.

Space Debris: It’s Clean Up Time!

Space Debris Submitted to the Ilan Ramon Science Olympiad of the Weizmann Institute By the Ramaz Space Rams Ramaz Middle School New York, NY, USA Opening of the slide show