Draco Mission: Spectacular Destruction for a Cleaner Space

In an ambitious leap towards space sustainability, the European Space Agency (ESA) is launching a unique mission called Draco, designed to study and assess the fiery reentry of satellites into Earth’s atmosphere. The Destructive Reentry Assessment Container Object mission, or Draco, marks an important milestone in understanding satellite reentry and the growing problem of space debris. The mission will provide critical data to improve satellite design and contribute to ESA’s long-term goal of achieving zero space debris by 2030.

The Growing Problem of Space Debris

Space debris, which includes defunct satellites and fragments of disintegrated spacecraft, is a significant and increasing challenge. Earth’s lower orbits are becoming crowded, and the possibility of debris collisions is a threat to both space exploration and the safety of satellites currently in operation. The Draco mission addresses a fundamental question: What exactly happens to satellites during their fiery reentry into Earth’s atmosphere?

Draco's mission is to gather key insights into the disintegration process of satellites as they burn up. By better understanding how satellite components interact with the atmosphere during reentry, scientists can design more sustainable spacecraft that minimize their impact on both space and Earth's environment.

Reentry and Spacecraft Disintegration

Satellites orbit Earth at incredible speeds, and as they reenter the atmosphere, the intense heat and pressure cause them to break apart. Although many of these satellites burn up completely, there is a significant amount of uncertainty about how much of their material actually disintegrates, how much reaches Earth’s surface, and the potential environmental impact.

According to ESA’s Head of Space Safety, Holger Krag, “Reentry science is an essential element of the design for demise efforts. We need to gain more insight into what happens when satellites burn up in the atmosphere, as well as validate our reentry models.” Draco’s mission is to provide this missing data by observing and recording the destruction of a satellite in real time during reentry.

The Science Behind Draco's Mission

One of the biggest challenges in studying satellite reentry is the inability to recreate the exact conditions of reentry on Earth. While experiments in wind tunnels and computer simulations provide some insight, they do not perfectly replicate the extreme velocity, forces, and chaotic motions experienced by a satellite during uncontrolled reentry. This is where the Draco mission steps in.

Draco’s spacecraft is specifically designed to simulate the average low-Earth orbit satellite. Equipped with sensors, cameras, and other recording devices, Draco will track and transmit data throughout its destructive descent. The mission is to capture how a satellite breaks apart and how its materials behave during reentry. This data will be essential in helping scientists improve future satellite designs to be more “demisable,” meaning they will break apart more completely and safely during reentry.

Draco’s Unique Design for Data Collection

The Draco spacecraft is outfitted with sensors and cameras that will continue recording data as long as possible while the satellite disintegrates. To protect the system from total destruction, a specially designed indestructible capsule is employed to house the critical instruments that will gather data. This capsule, likened to an "octopus" by ESA’s Draco project manager, Stijn Lemmens, will extend cables to the various sensors that measure temperatures, pressures, and strains on the spacecraft’s components as it burns up.

The satellite, weighing about 200 kg and the size of a washing machine, will not have any propulsion system, allowing it to reenter the atmosphere naturally. Once in orbit, Draco will remain in space for no more than 12 hours before beginning its fiery descent. During reentry, Draco's sensors will record everything from the heat buildup to the pressures applied on the disintegrating structure.

Once the satellite burns up, a 40 cm capsule will deploy a parachute and stabilize, allowing it to connect to a geostationary satellite and transmit its collected data back to Earth. This data will be crucial in enhancing the accuracy of reentry models and improving the safety and sustainability of future satellites.

Advancing Sustainable Space Exploration

The Draco mission is one part of ESA’s broader initiative to combat space debris. Dubbed the "Zero Debris Approach," ESA has committed to halting the creation of space debris by 2030. This ambitious goal reflects the growing awareness of the risks posed by space debris, both to current satellites and future space missions.

As part of ESA’s efforts, scientists hope that the data collected from the Draco mission will help guide the development of "design for demise" technologies. These technologies will ensure that satellites are built to burn up more completely during reentry, leaving little to no debris behind.

Tim Flohrer, Head of the ESA Space Debris Office, explains, “Draco will shine a light on many of the unknowns during satellite reentries. It will get us out of the chicken-and-egg loop and create a different data set to calibrate our systems and models, advancing the implementation of zero-debris technologies.”

The Future of Satellite Reentry and Sustainability

As the frequency of satellite launches increases, so too does the urgency of understanding how reentry impacts the environment and how spacecraft can be designed to reduce debris. The Draco mission represents a significant step forward in this science. It will provide invaluable insights into the behavior of spacecraft during reentry and help advance the development of more sustainable satellite designs.

By focusing on the critical issue of space debris, ESA’s Draco mission is contributing to a cleaner, more sustainable future in space exploration. The data collected by Draco will play an important role in ensuring that space remains a safe and navigable environment for future missions, including high-profile ventures such as the Boeing Starliner spacecraft, Voyager 1, and lunar module missions.

The information gathered from Draco will not only benefit ESA's goals but also assist global efforts to mitigate space debris and ensure the sustainability of human activities in orbit. As space exploration continues to expand, missions like Draco will be key to safeguarding Earth’s orbits for future generations.