High energy laser sources for space debris detection

Abstract

The large and rising number of space debris particles in low earth orbit (LEO) is posing an increasing danger to LEO satellites and the ISS. For example, even sub-centimeter particles can cause significant damage to solar panels; cm-class objects can destroy satellites. In the medium term, this threat can limit the use of popular orbits that have a high density of space debris. A first step in dealing with space debris entails locating and tracking even small debris objects with high precision to calculate orbital data and evaluate the threat they pose to satellites. After an initial passive optical detection of particles, a ground-based, high energy laser is required to obtain precise distance information through time-of-flight measurements. For this purpose, a 1 J, 1 kHz laser system with good beam quality based on thin-disk laser amplifiers is under development. Here we present the current status of the experiment and give an overview of the planned laser setup.