Space systems´ vulnerability assessment to space debris: A methodology and a program

A method to assess vulnerability of a space mission due to the threat of space debris is presented in this paper. It handles different effects of the threat on the space system used to fulfill the mission: effects from which the system can protect itself from, by reacting, and effects the system must endure. The method is presented through the example of vulnerability assessment of an Earth observation mission, performed by a single satellite. Different effects of space debris are considered on the satellite, depending whether they are large enough to be tracked or not. Numerical results are presented and analyzed to illustrate the proposed approach.