Morphologically Accurate Numerical Model of Satellite Foam-Core Panel Impacted by Orbital Debris

The conducted numerical and physical hypervelocity impact testing illustrated that foam-core sandwich panel can effectively serve as a multifunctional component of the spacecraft, providing weight-efficient protection against micrometeoroid and orbital debris particles in addition to its original load-bearing function. The foam core plays an essential role in orbital debris fragmentation and the overall shielding performance of the panel. This paper presents a stepwise systematic modeling methodology that enables the implementation of the morphological features and enhanced randomization into the foam geometry, thus increasing the level of details and improving the model's overall performance. Validation of the model is demonstrated via a comparison of the physical and numerical hypervelocity impact test outcomes.