CASTAway: An asteroid main belt tour and survey

N. E. Bowles*, C. Snodgrass, A. Gibbings, J. P. Sanchez, J. A. Arnold, P. Eccleston, T. Andert, A. Probst, G. Naletto, A. C. Vandaele, J. de Leon, A. Nathues, I. R. Thomas, N. Thomas, L. Jorda, V. Da Deppo, H. Haack, S. F. Green, B. Carry, K. L. Donaldson HannaJ. Leif Jorgensen, A. Kereszturi, F. E. DeMeo, M. R. Patel, J. K. Davies, F. Clarke, K. Kinch, A. Guilbert-Lepoutre, J. Agarwal, A. S. Rivkin, P. Pravec, S. Fornasier, M. Granvik, R. H. Jones, N. Murdoch, K. H. Joy, E. Pascale, M. Tecza, J. M. Barnes, J. Licandro, B. T. Greenhagen, S. B. Calcutt, C. M. Marriner, T. Warren, I. Tosh

*Corresponding author for this work

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    Abstract

    CASTAway is a mission concept to explore our Solar System's main asteroid belt. Asteroids and comets provide a window into the formation and evolution of our Solar System and the composition of these objects can be inferred from space-based remote sensing using spectroscopic techniques. Variations in composition across the asteroid populations provide a tracer for the dynamical evolution of the Solar System. The mission combines a long-range (point source) telescopic survey of over 10,000 objects, targeted close encounters with 10–20 asteroids and serendipitous searches to constrain the distribution of smaller (e.g. 10 m) size objects into a single concept. With a carefully targeted trajectory that loops through the asteroid belt, CASTAway would provide a comprehensive survey of the main belt at multiple scales. The scientific payload comprises a 50 cm diameter telescope that includes an integrated low-resolution (R = 30–100) spectrometer and visible context imager, a thermal (e.g. 6–16 µm) imager for use during the flybys, and modified star tracker cameras to detect small (∼10 m) asteroids. The CASTAway spacecraft and payload have high levels of technology readiness and are designed to fit within the programmatic and cost caps for a European Space Agency medium class mission, while delivering a significant increase in knowledge of our Solar System.

    Original languageEnglish
    JournalAdvances in Space Research
    Volume62
    Issue number8
    Pages (from-to)1998-2025
    ISSN0273-1177
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2018

    Keywords

    • Flyby
    • Main Asteroid Belt
    • Mapping
    • Remote sensing
    • Survey

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