Project description
Ionic electro spray engines-powered CubeSats to mitigate space debris
The expanding space industry is increasing debris in low Earth orbit (LEO). A CubeSat swarm could help stabilise and lower the orbit of debris to facilitate atmospheric burn-up. However, this complex mission requires advanced guidance and propulsion systems that are not yet available. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the REDECORATE project will develop CubeSat swarms as a cost-effective solution for mitigating space debris. It will create a debris deorbiting and recommissioning concept using CubeSats equipped with advanced, staged ionic electro spray engines (iESE) that enable longer missions and improved reliability. When deployed around a decommissioned satellite, the CubeSats will coordinate their iESEs to manage detumbling and deorbiting, and potentially recommission the satellite.
Objective
Space industry is growing at an unprecedented rate with more satellites launched into low Earth orbits (LEO) each year than ever before. This is leading to an increasing number of collisions of uncontrolled space objects and space debris accumulation in LEO. Sustainability of the space economy requires new techniques to address space debris. REDECORATE proposes CubeSat swarms as a cost-effective way to mitigate space debris. It develops a debris deorbiting and recommission concept combining novel control and guidance approaches and a CubeSat swarm equipped with staged ionic electro spray engines (iESE). A CubeSat swarm can rendezvous with space debris, dissipate its rotational energy (detumble) using reaction wheels. The main thrusters lower the debris orbit to burn-up the system in the atmosphere. Such a mission is highly challenging, requires coordinated CubeSat swarm guidance and control, reliable hardware and effective propulsion - a combination which does not exist so far. First, staged iESE thrusters facilitate longer missions and achieve higher reliability and thrust than standard CubeSat propulsion. If the CubeSats are attached around a decommissioned satellite, coordinated activation of the iESEs can function as a new control system for detumbling (avoiding unreliable reaction wheels), deorbiting and due to their long life-time even recommissioning. Second, a safe-by-design hierarchical control framework will be developed to address the need for high reliability. It uses a planner-tracker feedback stack and addresses all mission segments. Third, integral quadratic constraints (IQCs) will be used to increase robustness w.r.t. system uncertainties and communication delay inside the swarm. The feasibility of the concept will be validated using IQC-based and probabilistic robustness analyses on a digital twin of the iESE CubeSat swarm and microcontrollers-in-the-loop. In summary, the project will provide Europe with know-how to tackle the space debris crisis.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology mechanical engineering vehicle engineering aerospace engineering satellite technology
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-GF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
01069 Dresden
Germany
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.