Hypervelocity Impacts on Satellite Sandwich Structures—A Review of Experimental Findings and Predictive Models
Riley Carriere, Aleksandr Cherniaev
Abstract
Sandwich panels are widely used in the design of unmanned satellites and, in addition to having a structural function, can often serve as shielding, protecting the satellites’ equipment from hypervelocity impacts (HVI) of orbital debris and micrometeoroids. This paper provides a comprehensive review of experimental studies in the field of HVI on sandwich panels with honeycomb- and open-cell foam cores, as well as an examination of available predictive models for the assessment of the panels’ ballistic limits. The emphasis of the review is placed on: (i) identifying gaps in the existing experimental database and the appropriate directions for its further expansion; and (ii) understanding the limitations of the available predictive models and the potential for their improvement.