Nuclear powered spaceborne laser for orbital debris removal

Abstract

Mid-term opportunities to launch a high-power spaceborne laser are highly restricted due to technical, economic and political issues of it`s design, satellite deployment and system performance. The key technologies, providing the midterm development of a preproduction prototype of a spaceborne laser for small scale debris removal from the low-Earth orbits, are analyzed. A novel approach of nuclear power supplying of the spaceborne laser is presented. It is claimed that nuclear power supplying and electric jet engine technologies implemented in a spacecraft with an onboard laser would provide not only all the energetic requirements, but also orbital maneuvering strong capabilities. The latter would ensure more consistent follow-on rendezvous conditions with space objects, and hence, more efficient low orbital debris removal scenarios.