The recent observation of interstellar objects, 1I/Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov cross the solar system opened new opportunities for planetary science and planetary defense. As the first confirmed objects originating outside of the solar system, there are myriads of origin questions to explore and discuss, including where they came from, how did they get here and what are they composed of. Besides, there is a need to be cognizant especially if such interstellar objects pass by the Earth of potential dangers of impact. Specifically, in the case of Oumuamua, which was detected after its perihelion, passed by the Earth at around 0.2 AU, with an estimated excess speed of 60 km/s relative to the Earth. Without enough forewarning time, a collision with such high-speed objects can pose a catastrophic danger to all life Earth. Such challenges underscore the importance of detection and exploration systems to study these interstellar visitors. The detection system can include a spacecraft constellation with zenith-pointing telescope spacecraft. After an event is detected, a spacecraft swarm can be deployed from Earth to flyby past the visitor. The flyby can then be designed to perform a proximity operation of interest. This work aims to develop algorithms to design these swarm missions through the IDEAS (Integrated Design Engineering & Automation of Swarms) architecture. Specifically, we develop automated algorithms to design an Earth-based detection constellation and a spacecraft swarm that generates detailed surface maps of the visitor during the rendezvous, along with their heliocentric cruise trajectories.
Tracking the flow of interstellar gas across scales: from galaxies to star clusters
Cardiff University（卡迪夫大学）；Universität Bonn（波恩大学）；Leiden University（莱顿大学）；Observatorio Astronómico Nacional (IGN)（国家天文台（西班牙））；University of Hertfordshire（赫特福德大学）；University of Massachusetts, Amherst（马萨诸塞大学阿默斯特分校）；Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen（哥本哈根大学尼尔斯·玻尔研究所）；Univ. Grenoble Alpes（格勒诺布尔阿尔卑斯大学）；ESA/AURA, Space Telescope Science Institute（欧洲空间天文应用与研究联盟/太空望远镜科学研究所）
The recently discovered first high velocity hyperbolic objects passing through the Solar System, 1I/'Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov, have raised the question about near term missions to Interstellar Objects. In situ spacecraft exploration of these objects will allow the direct determination of both their structure and their chemical and isotopic composition, enabling an entirely new way of studying small bodies from outside our solar system. In this paper, we map various Interstellar Object classes to mission types, demonstrating that missions to a range of Interstellar Object classes are feasible, u…
Stellar occultations have been used to search for Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud objects. We propose a search for interstellar objects based on the characteristic durations ($\sim 0.1 \mathrm{s}$) of their stellar occultation signals and high inclination relative to the ecliptic plane. An all-sky monitoring program of all $\sim 7 \times 10^6$ stars with $R \lesssim 12.5$ using 1-m telescopes with $0.1 \; \mathrm{s}$ cadences is predicted to discover $\sim 1$ interstellar object per year.
In this paper, we review some of the extant literature on the study of interstellar objects (ISOs). With the forthcoming Vera C. Rubin Telescope and Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), we find that $0.38 - 84$ `Oumuamua-like interstellar objects are expected to be detected in the next 10 years, with 95\% confidence. The feasibility of a rendezvous trajectory has been demonstrated in previous work. In this paper, we investigate the requirements for a rendezvous mission with the primary objective of producing a resolved image of an interstellar object. We outline the rendezvous distances nec…
The previous decade saw the discovery of the first four known interstellar objects due to advances in astronomical viewing equipment. Future sky surveys with greater sensitivity will allow for more frequent detections of such objects, including increasingly small objects. We consider the capabilities of the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory to detect interstellar objects of small sizes during its period of operation over the next decade. We use LSST's detection capabilities and simulate populations of interstellar objects in the range of 1-50m in diameter …
The earliest confirmed interstellar object, `Oumuamua, was discovered in the Solar System by Pan-STARRS in 2017, allowing for a calibration of the abundance of interstellar objects of its size $\sim 100\;$ m. This was followed by the discovery of Borisov, which allowed for a similar calibration of its size $\sim 0.4 - 1 \mathrm{\; km}$. One would expect a much higher abundance of significantly smaller interstellar objects, with some of them colliding with Earth frequently enough to be noticeable. Based on the CNEOS catalog of bolide events, we identified in 2019 the meteor detected at 2014-01-…
Using the "statite," or static-satelite, concept -- an artificial satellite capable of hovering in place using a solar sail -- this work proposes to create a dynamic orbital slingshot in anticipation of Interstellar Objects (ISOs) passing through our solar system. The existence of these ISOs offers a unique scientific opportunity to answer fundamental scientific questions about the origin of solar system volatiles, the compositions of exo-solar systems, and the transfer rates of material between solar systems. However, due to their high heliocentric velocities and relatively short lead time, i…
This paper explicates the concept of an Intermediate Point (IP), its incorporation as a node along an interplanetary trajectory, and how it permits the determination and optimization of trajectories to interstellar objects (ISOs). IPs can be used to model Solar Oberth Manoeuvres (SOM) as well as Vinfnity Leveraging Manoeuvres (VLM). The SOM has been established theoretically as an important mechanism by which rapid exit from the solar system and intercept of ISOs can both be achieved; the VLM has been demonstrated practically as a method of reducing overall mission Delta-V as well as the Chara…
The recently discovered population of interstellar objects presents us with the opportunity to characterize material from extrasolar planetary and stellar systems up close. The forthcoming Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) will provide an unprecedented increase in sensitivity to these objects compared to the capabilities of currently operational observational facilities. We generate a synthetic population of `Oumuamua-like objects drawn from their galactic kinematics, and identify the distribution of impact parameters, eccentricities, hyperbolic velocities and sk…
The recent discovery of the first confirmed Interstellar Objects (ISOs) passing through the Solar System on clearly hyperbolic objects opens the potential for near term ISO missions, either to the two known objects, or to similar objects found in the future. Such ISOs are the only exobodies we have a chance of accessing directly in the near future. This White Paper focuses on the science possible from in situ spacecraft exploration of nearby ISOs. Such spacecraft missions are technically possible now and are suitable potential missions in the period covered by the 2023-2032 Decadal Survey. Spa…
In August 2019, a second interstellar object 2I/Borisov was discovered 2 years after the discovery of the first known interstellar object, 1I/'Oumuamua. Can we send a spacecraft to this object, using existing technologies? In this paper we assess the technical feasibility of a near-term mission to 2I/Borisov. We apply the Optimum Interplanetary Trajectory Software (OITS) tool to generate trajectories to 2I/Borisov. As results, we get the minimal $ΔV$ trajectory with a launch date in July 2018. For this trajectory, a Falcon Heavy launcher could have hauled an 8 ton spacecraft to 2I/Borisov. For…
