Laelaps
Kall Morris Inc
Laelaps is a spacecraft designed for orbital debris removal, utilizing the TumblEye system for characterization and REACCH for capture. The MK1 mission aims to demonstrate communication, thrust variation measurement, and debris retrieval.
Technical specifications
- Capture mechanism
- Mechanical gecko adhesion
- Compatibility
- Nearly any object shape, size, or surface condition
- Operation
- Non-destructive securing and selective release
- Use case
- Multi-use, multi-capture debris removal
- Mass
- 180 kg
- Dimensions
- 15" ESPA mounted
- Propulsion Type
- Electric
- Unladen delta-v (AV)
- >4500 m/s
- Client object absolute tumble rate
- ≤5 deg/s along the cumulative axis
- RPOD Kit
- Computer vision camera system
About
The MK1 Laelaps spacecraft serves as a proving ground for KallMorris Inc.’s calculations, with its primary mission objectives including establishing communication with ground stations and measuring thrust variations during its journey to a target orbit. Once the MK1 successfully demonstrates its ability to reach the designated orbit, it will proceed to rendezvous with a pre-selected piece of nearby orbital debris. This debris is chosen for its lack of known anomalous properties, though it is expected to be spinning on one or more axes. To address this, Laelaps will employ the TumblEye system to characterize the object’s rotation, enabling the spacecraft to match the debris’s spin. Following characterization, Laelaps will use the REACCH end effector to retrieve the debris. The MK1 mission’s goal is to collect two or more pieces of debris, with the exact number dependent on the debris’s location and the efficiency of maneuvering. Future iterations of the Laelaps design will incorporate lessons learned and data gathered from the demonstration flight of the first craft, aiming for continuous improvement in orbital debris removal capabilities.
Documentation
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