Supervisors and Principal Investigators
Dr. Hao Chen, Dr Koki Ho - Space Systems Optimization Group, Georgia Tech
Description
An abundance of space debris exists from human space endeavours, ranging from bolts and screws to abandoned satellites and fuel thrusters. It has been well researched that, in order for space to still be safely explored in the centuries to come, debris needs to start being removed. With every collision that debris have with one another in space, tens of thousands of more debris can potentially be created and infect our Earth orbit. Even if humanity ceases all space operations today, the domino effect of space debris colliding with one another to spawn further debris would occur and would not be prevented.
At my time in the Space Systems Optimization Group, I heavily studied orbital mechanics and assisted designing potential missions to assist active debris removal (ADR). Though COVID-19 stopped much of this research mid-semester, we generated numerous potential satellite trajectories and manuevers to optimize the amount of debris that can be eliminated with the lowest energy expenditures.
A fun fact I learned while being in this lab: if you're looking for a career in orbital mechanics, Kerbal Space Program is an excellent videogame for understanding it qualitatively.