Session
Weekend Session 3: Science/Mission Payloads - Research & Academia I
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Abstract
Accurate models of the distribution of meteoroids in the Earth-Moon system are needed to predict impacts with space equipment and for safe space exploration. The Moon's lack of atmosphere allows for observation of meteoroid impacts: understanding meteoroids is important for studying asteroids, comets, and near-Earth objects.
The Lunar Meteoroid Impacts Observer (LUMIO) is a CubeSat mission designed to detect and characterize meteoroid impacts on the far side of the Moon. It can detect small meteoroids too faint for Earth-based observations. LUMIO operates in a Halo orbit at Earth-Moon L2 using the LUMIO-Cam, an optical instrument detecting visible light flashes. The mission is developed under ESA's General Support Technology Program Fly Element.
This work highlights the technical challenges and innovative solutions for the LUMIO platform, designed to meet scientific experiment requirements. The satellite will perform a transfer through a Weak Stability Boundary (WSB) trajectory to reach its final orbit.
During nominal operations, LUMIO will detect meteoroids for half the lunar month when the Moon is not completely illuminated. The remaining time will be dedicated to station keeping, orbit determination, and optical navigation using an innovative approach. LUMIO features high-reliability technologies to ensure mission success despite mass, volume, power, and cost constraints.
LUMIO, a Lunar Meteoroid Impacts Observer
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Accurate models of the distribution of meteoroids in the Earth-Moon system are needed to predict impacts with space equipment and for safe space exploration. The Moon's lack of atmosphere allows for observation of meteoroid impacts: understanding meteoroids is important for studying asteroids, comets, and near-Earth objects.
The Lunar Meteoroid Impacts Observer (LUMIO) is a CubeSat mission designed to detect and characterize meteoroid impacts on the far side of the Moon. It can detect small meteoroids too faint for Earth-based observations. LUMIO operates in a Halo orbit at Earth-Moon L2 using the LUMIO-Cam, an optical instrument detecting visible light flashes. The mission is developed under ESA's General Support Technology Program Fly Element.
This work highlights the technical challenges and innovative solutions for the LUMIO platform, designed to meet scientific experiment requirements. The satellite will perform a transfer through a Weak Stability Boundary (WSB) trajectory to reach its final orbit.
During nominal operations, LUMIO will detect meteoroids for half the lunar month when the Moon is not completely illuminated. The remaining time will be dedicated to station keeping, orbit determination, and optical navigation using an innovative approach. LUMIO features high-reliability technologies to ensure mission success despite mass, volume, power, and cost constraints.
