United States of America As Represented by the Secretary of the Air Force

Other

Gregory G Spanjers

Thomas G Roberts

David Norman White

Robert Shawn Thompson

Kevin E Mahaffy

Hieu Charlie Nguyen

Michael Dulligan

Jason Guarnieri

Nathan DeVilbiss

Timothy Klatt

Holly Victorson

Ryan Olcott

Ronald A Spores

Peter Thomas

Marcy Dulligan, Legal Representative

James Winter

A technique whereby one or more conducting plates electrically-biased negatively with respect to a spacecraft's electrical potential and insulated from the spacecraft surface are located around the spacecraft surface whereby contaminant ions in a plasma surrounding the spacecraft are accelerated through an electric potential, caused to collide with the conductive surface, neutralized through collisions with surface atoms, and then reflected away from the spacecraft as neutral atoms or molecules.

Methods to actively protect spacecraft from damage due to collision with ions

A sensor assembly that replaces a single focal plane array detector with two focal plane array detectors orientated with respect to each other such that a power splitter divides an incoming light source equally between each detector. The two detectors are selected such that the locations of poorly-operating pixels in each detector do not overlay. The output signals of each detector are then electronically or analytically combined to yield 100 percent operability. Separate switchable wavelength filter wheels having one or more different wavelength filters may be positioned between the power splitter and each of the detectors. The power splitter may be replaced by a polarization splitter. One detector can be translated perpendicular to the incoming light source relative to the second detector to compensate for new poorly-operating pixels and/or to improve the spatial resolution.

Sensor assemblies using redundant two-dimensional detector arrays

Spacecraft thrusters capable of dual-mode operation, and a method of applying propulsion to a spacecraft using a dual-mode thruster are provided. In one embodiment, the thrusters of the current invention can operate as a chemical motor to provide high thrust and low propellant exhaust velocity to achieve fast maneuverability, or as an electric propulsion thruster to provide low thrust and high exhaust velocity to perform maneuvers with a minimal amount of propellant.

Dual-mode chemical-electric thrusters for spacecraft

A method whereby one or more conducting plates electrically-biased negatively with respect to a spacecraft's electrical potential and insulated from the spacecraft surface are located around the spacecraft surface whereby contaminant ions in a plasma surrounding the spacecraft are attracted to and accelerated through the conducting plates electric potential, caused to collide with the conductive surface, neutralized through collisions with surface atoms, and then reflected away from the spacecraft as neutral atoms or molecules.

Approaches to actively protect spacecraft from damage due to collisions with ions

A single energy storage capacitor is used to apply electrical energy to selected propellant modules, each module generating thrust in a desired direction by the high voltage induced vaporization of the copolymer spacer material in a conventional coaxial cable within the selected module. A lightweight, low cost, and EMI free thruster is thus provided.

Micro-pulsed plasma thruster having coaxial cable segment propellant modules

An energy storage capacitor after being charged, is discharged across an electrically conductive solid propellant by means of a movable electrode contacting the propellant, and the resulting direct ohmic heating of the face of the propellant results in impulse producing vaporization thereof.

Pulsed plasma thruster with electric switch enabling use of a solid

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Albuquerque, NM, United States of America

Gregory G Spanjers