A study on assessments of cumulative damage caused by space micro-debris

Spacecrafts are subjected to impacts caused by large amount of micro-debris during flight. These micrometer scale particles can induce defects such as large-area craters or functional degradation of materials and devices. An assessment method was established for evaluating cumulative damage on spacecraft surfaces by space micro-debris. Flux per unit area was calculated by space debris distribution models as ORDEM2000 and MASTER2005. By employing NASA's impact characteristic equation and based on the China's spacelab, the cumulative damage area on the aluminum plate was obtained. The calculated results with respect to different rang of Δd was discussed. It is shown that the damages rely much on the debris distribution model, thus appropriate model derived from different space impacting cases should be applied.