Survey and origin identification of breakup debris using time delay integration method

Kyushu University has proposed a strategy applicable to optical search and origin identification of fragmentation debris generated by breakups of spacecraft and rocket bodies. This strategy can predict the population and the motion of fragments by using debris modelling techniques. An observation of fragments from a specific breakup was actually conducted by applying the proposed strategy. The target was the US Titan 3C Transtage (1968-08Ili) exploded in February 1992 in the Geosynchronous Earth Orbit region. In this observation, the Time Delay Integration method was adopted to detect fragments. This method can detect moving faint objects by adjusting a rate of charge transfer in the Charge Coupled Device sensor to their motion on images. In the case of the survey of unknown fragments, the predicted motion can be used as the charge transfer. As the result of this observation, thirty-one unknown objects were detected, and orbit determinations of seven objects have succeeded. The origins of these seven objects were estimated by comparing the estimated orbits with candidates, and one object was identified to the target object. Finally, this paper reviews the proposed search strategy by comparing with the twenty-eight cataloaued 1968-08IE fraaments.