Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-r5fsc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T22:50:46.125Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Degradation of Spacecraft Materials in the Space Environment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 January 2011

Sharon K.R. Miller  and
Bruce Banks
Get access

Abstract

When we think of space, we typically think of a vacuum containing very little matter that lies between the Earth and other planetary and stellar bodies. However, the space above Earth's breathable atmosphere and beyond contains many things that make designing durable spacecraft a challenge. Depending on where the spacecraft is flying, it may encounter atomic oxygen, ultraviolet and other forms of radiation, charged particles, micrometeoroids and debris, and temperature extremes. These environments on their own and in combination can cause degradation and failure of polymers, composites, paints and other materials used on the exterior of spacecraft for thermal control, structure, and power generation. This article briefly discusses and gives examples of some of the degradation experienced on spacecraft and flight experiments as a result of the space environment and the use of ground and space data to predict durability.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Bulletin , Volume 35 , Issue 1: Materials Issues in the Space Environment , January 2010 , pp. 20 - 24
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Leger, L.J., Oxygen Atom Reaction with Shuttle Materials at Orbital Altitudes, NASA TM-58246 (1982).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
2. Whitaker, A.F., paper presented at the AIAA Shuttle Environment and Operations Meeting, Washington, DC, 31 October–2 November 1983, AIAA-83–2632-CP.Google Scholar
3. O'Neal, R.L., Levine, A.S., Kiser, C.C., Photographic Survey of the LDEF Mission, NASA SP 531 (1996).Google Scholar
4. Banks, B.A., Mirtich, M.J., Rutledge, S.K., Swec, D.M., Nahra, H.K., 23rd Aerospace Sciences Meeting, Reno, NV, 14–17 January 1985, NASA TM-87051.Google Scholar
5. Banks, B.A., Auer, B.M., Rutledge, S.K., Hill, C.M., Proceedings of the 4th Annual Workshop on Space Operations Automation and Robotics (SOAR 90), Albuquerque, NM, 26–28 June 1990.Google Scholar
6. Rutledge, S.K., Olle, R.M., Proceedings of the 38th International SAMPE Symposium, 10–13 May 1993, pp. 679–693.Google Scholar
7. Forkapa, M.J., Stidham, C.R., Banks, B.A., Rutledge, S.K., Ma, D.H., Sechkar, E.A., Third International Conference on Protection of Materials and Structures from the Low Earth Orbit Space Environment, Toronto, Canada, 25–26 April 1996, NASA TM-107212.Google Scholar
8. Banks, B.A., Demko, R., Atomic Oxygen Protection of Materials in Low Earth Orbit, NASA TM-2002–211360 (February 2002).Google Scholar
9. Banks, B.A., de Groh, K.K., Rutledge, S.K., Haytas, C.A., 44th Annual Meeting by the International Society of Optical Engineering, Denver, CO, 21 July 1999, NASA TM-1999–209179.Google Scholar
10. LDEF-69 Months in Space, First Post-Retrieval Symposium, Levine, A.S., Ed., NASA Conference Publication 3134, Parts 1–3, Kissimmee, FL, 2–8 June 1991.Google Scholar
11. de Groh, K.K., Banks, B.A., Dever, J.A., Jaworske, D.A., Miller, S.K., Sechkar, E.A., Panko, S.R., NASA Glenn Research Center's Materials International Space Station Experiments (MISSE 1–7), International Symposium on SM/MPAC and SEED Experiments (JAXA), Epochal Tsukuba, Japan, 10–11 March 2008, NASA TM-2008–215482.Google Scholar
12. Banks, B.A., Backus, J.A., Manno, M.V., Waters, D.L., Cameron, K.C., de Groh, K.K., in Atomic Oxygen Erosion Yield Prediction for Spacecraft Polymers in Low Earth Orbit, 11th International Symposium on Materials in the Space Environment (ISMSE-11), 15–18 September 2009.Google Scholar
13. Dever, J., Banks, B., de Groh, K., Miller, S., in Handbook of Environmental Degradation of Materials, Kutz, M., Ed. (William Andrew Publishing, Norwich, NY, 2005), pp. 465–501.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
14. Banks, B.A., Dever, J.A., Gebauer, L., Hill, C.M., in Proceedings of the LDEF-69 Months in Space, First Post-Retrieval Symposium, NASA CP-3134, Part 2, 2–8 June 1991, pp. 801–815.Google Scholar
15. Pippin, H.G., Analysis of Silverized Teflon Thermal Control Material Flown on the Long Duration Exposure Facility, NASA CR-4663 (July 1995).Google Scholar
16. Silverman, E.M., Space Environmental Effects on Spacecraft: LEO Materials Selection Guide, NASA CR-4661 (August 1995).Google Scholar
17. See, T., Allbrooks, M., Atkinson, D., Simon, C., Zolensky, M., “Meteoroid and Debris Impacts Features Documented on the Long Duration Exposure Facility,” (Preliminary Report Compiled by Members of the LDEF Meteoroid and Debris Special Investigation Group, NASA JSC 24608, August 1990).Google Scholar
18. O'Neal, R.L., Levine, A.S., Kiser, C.C., Photographic Survey of the LDEF Mission, NASA SP-531 (1996).Google Scholar
19. de Groh, K.K., Banks, B.A., J. Spacecr. Rockets 31 (4), 656 (1994).CrossRefGoogle Scholar