1st Edition

Physics of Satellite Surface Charging Causes, Effects, and Applications

By Shu T. Lai, Rezy Pradipta Copyright 2022
    136 Pages 56 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    136 Pages 56 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    This book will explore the fundamentals of spacecraft charging: why it occurs, when it occurs, where it occurs, how to measure it, and its side effects. It will discuss state-of-the-art spacecraft charging technologies, which will be explained in detail and with pedagogical emphasis. Exercises for further learning will be included to facilitate a deeper understanding of the material.

    It will be of interest to advanced undergraduate and graduate students, in addition to researchers working in physics and engineering keen to understand more about spacecraft interactions with space plasmas.

    Key Features:

    • Translates complex terminology into accessible language
    • Authored by experts in the field
    • Provides worked examples and exercises for further learning

    Foreword vii
    Biography ix

    CHAPTER 1 ■ Overview 1

    CHAPTER 2 ■ Spacecraft Equilibrium Potential 11

    CHAPTER 3 ■ Current Balance 19

    CHAPTER 4 ■ How to Measure Spacecraft Potential 25

    CHAPTER 5 ■ Secondary and Backscattered Electrons 33

    CHAPTER 6 ■ Critical Temperature for the Onset of Spacecraft Charging 43

    CHAPTER 7 ■ Importance of Surface Conditions 55

    CHAPTER 8 ■ High-Level Spacecraft Potential 63

    CHAPTER 9 ■ Spacecraft Charging in Sunlight 71

    CHAPTER 10 ■ The Monopole-Dipole Model 81

    CHAPTER 11 ■ The Question of Independence on Ambient Electron Density in Spacecraft Charging 91

    CHAPTER 12 ■ Spacecraft Charging Induced by Beam Emissions 101

    CHAPTER 13 ■ Mitigation Methods 115

    Index 125

    Biography

    SHU T. LAI earned his Ph.D. and M.A. from Brandeis University

    and his B.Sc. from the University of Hong Kong. He earned his

    Certificate of Special Studies in Administration and Management from

    Harvard University. He did research at AFRL. He is currently affiliated

    with the Space Propulsion Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of

    Technology, and the Institute of Scientific Research, Boston College. A

    recognized leader in spacecraft interactions with space plasmas, he has

    written more than one hundred publications and owns three patents. He is

    a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical Engineers (IEEE), a Fellow of the

    Institute of Physics, and a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society. He

    has served as the Chair of the AIAA Atmospheric and Space

    Environments Technical Committee and the Chair of the AIAA

    Atmospheric and Space Environments Standards Committee. He is now

    serving as a Senior Editor of IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science.

     

    REZY PRADIPTA earned his Ph.D. and S.M. in Nuclear Science and

    Engineering and his S.B. in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of

    Technology. He did his postdoctoral work at the Institute for Scientific

    Research, Boston College. He is currently a senior research scientist at

    the Institute for Scientific Research, Boston College. His research is about

    space plasma phenomena and their potential impacts on technological

    systems using observations from multi-diagnostic instruments such as

    radars and Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). These space

    phenomena include ionospheric plasma density irregularities, traveling

    ionospheric disturbances (TIDs), acoustic-gravity waves (AGWs), and

    equatorial plasma bubbles (EPBs). In addition to research activities, he

    also teaches an upper level undergraduate course (Space Weather and

    Consequences) at the Department of Earth and Environmental Science,

    Boston College.