Laelaps MK1 Debris Retrieval Spacecraft
Kall Morris Inc
Demonstration spacecraft for active debris removal — rendezvouses with tumbling orbital debris, matches rotation using TumblEye, and retrieves objects with the REACCH end effector.
Technical specifications
- Mission type
- Active debris removal demonstration
- Target
- Uncontrolled, tumbling orbital debris
- Rotation characterization
- TumblEye system
- Capture mechanism
- REACCH end effector
- Collection goal (MK1)
- 2+ debris pieces
About
Laelaps is Kall Morris Inc’s proving-ground spacecraft for validating orbital debris capture calculations. The MK1 spacecraft establishes communication with ground stations and measures thrust variations on the way to a target orbit, then rendezvouses with a planned piece of nearby orbital debris. The selected debris will likely be spinning in some axis or combination of axes, so KMI uses its TumblEye system to characterize the object’s rotation, allowing Laelaps to match that rotation and retrieve the debris using the REACCH capture mechanism. The MK1 mission aims to collect two or more debris pieces, with future designs improving on lessons learned from this demonstration flight.
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.
