Detecting the meteoroid by measuring the electromagnetic waves excited by the collision between the hypervelocity meteoroid and spacecraft

Abstract

Abstract The electromagnetic pulse excited by the collision between a hypervelocity meteoroid and a spacecraft is studied both numerically and theoretically. It is found that there are two kinds of electromagnetic pulse. The high-frequency electromagnetic pulse may be excited by the sum of all the electric dipoles. Each electron can be considered as an electric dipole. The low-frequency electromagnetic pulse is produced by the Langmuir oscillation of electrons. The energy flux density and the duration time of the excited low-frequency electromagnetic pulse by the meteoroid are also studied in the present paper. It is shown that the energy flux density increases as either the impact speed or the mass of the meteoroid increases. It is also shown that the duration time decreases as both the impact speed and the mass of the meteoroid increase. By measuring the strength and the duration time of the electromagnetic pulse excited by the collision between the hypervelocity meteoroid and spacecraft, we can estimate the speed and the mass of the hypervelocity meteoroid, which will be helpful in space flight and space exploration.