MAE GRADUATE SEMINAR SERIES 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.; September 22, 2011

1. MAE GRADUATE SEMINAR SERIES 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.; September 22, 2011 Carver/Turner – Havener Center Heavens! What a Mess! Dr. William P. Schonberg, P.E. Professor and Chair Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering Department Missouri University of Science and Technology Rolla, MO • Abstract • All spacecraft that operate in low-earth-orbit (such as telecommunications satellites and the ISS) are subject to high-speed impacts by space junk, which is also called ‘space debris’ or ‘orbital debris’. The threat of damage from high-speed orbital debris particle impacts has become a significant design consideration in the development and construction of long duration earth-orbiting spacecraft. Even a marble-size piece of space debris can inflict considerable damage to or even destroy an orbiting operational spacecraft or satellite. Considerable resources have been expended by NASA, the Air Force, and their contractors to design and build spacecraft that can survive in the hostile space environment and which can be protected from damage by pieces of space junk. During this presentation a variety of topics related to space debris will be reviewed, including: • Where does space debris come from? • How much space junk is really out there? • What happens when a spacecraft is hit by a piece of space junk? • How can we protect a spacecraft against damage by space debris impacts? • Is there any way to clean up the near earth region of space? • Will the situation improve or worsen in the future? • ________________________________________________________________________________________ • Dr. Schonberg has over 25 years teaching and research experience in the areas of shock physics, spacecraft protection, hypervelocity impact, and penetration mechanics. He received his BSCE from Princeton University in 1981, and his MS and PhD degrees from Northwestern University in 1983 and 1986, respectively. The results of his research have been applied to a wide variety of engineering problems, including the development of orbital debris protection systems for spacecraft in low earth orbit, kinetic energy weapons, the collapse of buildings under explosive loads, insensitive munitions, and aging aircraft. He is a Fellow of ASCE and ASME, and an Associate Fellow of the AIAA. In 2007 Dr. Schonberg received a Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award from the Humboldt Foundation in Germany. This award enabled him to spend 7 months at the Fraunhofer Ernst Mach Institute in Freiburg, Germany working on advanced MMOD protection systems for satellites and developing preliminary designs for safe lunar habitats using in-situ materials for protection against meteoroid impacts. In recent years, Dr. Schonberg has served on several NESC and NAE/NRC committees charged with reviewing a variety of key technical issues related to NASA’s space exploration programs. Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering This seminar is co-sponsored by the Academy of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineers .