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Laser Ablation Propulsion and Its Applications in Space

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Advances in the Application of Lasers in Materials Science

Part of the book series: Springer Series in Materials Science ((SSMATERIALS,volume 274))

Abstract

Where lasers shine is in propelling a remote object using a space-based mother ship with an onboard laser. In some cases, there is no other reasonable choice. These cases include small low Earth orbit (LEO) debris reentry, large LEO debris nudging to avoid collisions, direct launch to LEO of small payloads at low cost and raising large geosynchronous (GEO) objects to graveyard orbits. We introduce the new, exciting idea of the laser rocket, in which a “burst mode” laser accelerates a 25-kg spherical probe surrounded by a discardable ablator layer to 3.6 km/s in minutes.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

    Claude R. Phipps

  2. Photonic Associates, LLC, Santa Fe, NM, USA

    Claude R. Phipps

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  1. Claude R. Phipps
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Correspondence to Claude R. Phipps .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Energia, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy

    Paolo M. Ossi

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Phipps, C.R. (2018). Laser Ablation Propulsion and Its Applications in Space. In: Ossi, P. (eds) Advances in the Application of Lasers in Materials Science. Springer Series in Materials Science, vol 274. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-96845-2_8

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