Spacecraft Charging and Mitigation

Importance of Surface Conditions for Spacecraft Charging

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A Threshold Effect for Spacecraft Charging

The existence of a threshold energy dependence is shown for the charging of geostationary spacecraft in eclipse. Applied Technology Satellite 6 and P78-2 (SCATHA) data show that plasma sheet fluxes must extend above 10 keV for these satellites to charge in eclipse. The existence of a threshold energy is significant because magnetospheric convection boundaries produce relatively sharp phase spac...

Effects of Evolving Surface Contamination on Spacecraft Charging

The effects of evolving surface contamination on spacecraft charging have been investigated through (i) ground-based measurements of the change in electron emission properties of a conducting surface undergoing contamination and (ii) modeling of the charging of such surfaces using the NASCAP code. Specifically, we studied a Au surface as adsorbed species were removed and a very thin disordered ...

Charge Storage, Conductivity and Charge Profiles of Insulators As Related to Spacecraft Charging

Dissipation of charges built up near the surface of insulators due to space environment interaction is central to understanding spacecraft charging. Conductivity of insulating materials is key to determine how accumulated charge will distribute across the spacecraft and how rapidly charge imbalance will dissipate. To understand these processes requires knowledge of how charge is deposited withi...

On the Feasibility of Detecting Spacecraft Charging and Arcing by Remote Sensing