Meteoroid Stream Formation Due to the Extraction of Space Resources from Asteroids. (arXiv:1911.12840v1 [astro-ph.EP])
<a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Fladeland_L/0/1/0/all/0/1">Logan Fladeland</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Boley_A/0/1/0/all/0/1">Aaron C. Boley</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Byers_M/0/1/0/all/0/1">Michael Byers</a>
[Abridged] Asteroid mining is not necessarily a distant prospect. Hayabusa2
and OSIRIS-REx have recently rendezvoused with near-Earth asteroids and will
return samples to Earth. While there is significant science motivation for
these missions, there are also resource interests. Space agencies and
commercial entities are particularly interested in ices and water-bearing
minerals that could be used to produce rocket fuel in space. The
internationally coordinated roadmaps of major space agencies depend on
utilizing the natural resources of such celestial bodies. Several companies
have already created plans for intercepting and extracting water and minerals
from near-Earth objects, as even a small asteroid could have high economic
worth. However, the low surface gravity of asteroids could make the release of
mining waste and the subsequent formation of debris streams a consequence of
asteroid mining. Strategies to contain material during extraction could still
eventually require the purposeful jettison of waste to avoid managing unwanted
mass. Using simulations, we explore the formation of mining debris streams by
integrating particles released from four select asteroids. Radiation effects
are included, and a range of debris sizes are explored. The simulation results
are used to investigate the timescales for debris stream formation, the sizes
of the streams, and the meteoroid fluxes compared with sporadic meteoroids. We
find that for prodigious mining activities resulting in the loss of a few
percent of the asteroid’s mass or more, it is possible to produce streams that
exceed the sporadic flux during stream crossing for some meteoroid sizes. The
result of these simulations are intended to highlight potential unintended
consequences that could result from NewSpace activity, which could help to
inform efforts to develop international space resource guidelines.
[Abridged] Asteroid mining is not necessarily a distant prospect. Hayabusa2
and OSIRIS-REx have recently rendezvoused with near-Earth asteroids and will
return samples to Earth. While there is significant science motivation for
these missions, there are also resource interests. Space agencies and
commercial entities are particularly interested in ices and water-bearing
minerals that could be used to produce rocket fuel in space. The
internationally coordinated roadmaps of major space agencies depend on
utilizing the natural resources of such celestial bodies. Several companies
have already created plans for intercepting and extracting water and minerals
from near-Earth objects, as even a small asteroid could have high economic
worth. However, the low surface gravity of asteroids could make the release of
mining waste and the subsequent formation of debris streams a consequence of
asteroid mining. Strategies to contain material during extraction could still
eventually require the purposeful jettison of waste to avoid managing unwanted
mass. Using simulations, we explore the formation of mining debris streams by
integrating particles released from four select asteroids. Radiation effects
are included, and a range of debris sizes are explored. The simulation results
are used to investigate the timescales for debris stream formation, the sizes
of the streams, and the meteoroid fluxes compared with sporadic meteoroids. We
find that for prodigious mining activities resulting in the loss of a few
percent of the asteroid’s mass or more, it is possible to produce streams that
exceed the sporadic flux during stream crossing for some meteoroid sizes. The
result of these simulations are intended to highlight potential unintended
consequences that could result from NewSpace activity, which could help to
inform efforts to develop international space resource guidelines.
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