COLLISIONAL ACCRETION EXPERIMENT

A Microgravity Experiment on Accretion in Space Environments

K. Lai*, J. Colwell, A. Dove, S. Benjamin, B. Hoover, S. Lane, C. Tiller, A. Whitaker
University of Central Florida Department of Physics

HARDWARE!

The accre2ng object is held in a cup

within the rectangular container, the
cup is loaded with a low k-value
compression spring. The object and
cup is then held by a torsion spring
loaded bar that is forced in a ver2cal
posi2on by a spring plunger. When
the payload is ready, muscle wire
contracts and pulls the spring plunger
LAUNCH! out of the bar to allow the accre2ng
mechanism! object to be launched.

BACKGROUND!
The Collisional Accre2on Experiment is a student presented
project that generalizes the idea of launching a macro object
through a cloud of dust. This experimental technique will allow
us to study the s2cking and accre2on of small par2cles onto
larger accre2ng bodies, so we can beNer understand par2cle
interac2on in protoplanetary disks and planetary ring systems,
such as Saturns shepherding moons.

*k.lai@knights.ucf.edu
physics.cos.ucf.edu/cate

ABSTRACT!
The early stages of planetesimal forma2on require the
adhesion of par2cles through surface contact forces. The
proposed payload, the Collisional Accre2on Experiment, is
designed to study the accre2on of small par2cles onto a larger
body in vacuum, as well as in microgravity condi2ons. This
experiment will allow further insight into the par2cle
interac2ons in proto-planetary disks and in planetary ring
systems. CATE has been awarded the 2013 Undergraduate
Student Instrumenta2on Program, and is slated to y on a
parabolic ight in the summer of 2014. The payload will be
designed to be semi-automa2c. A macroscopic target object
will be released via a spring system on one end of the tube
shaped payload and will traverse a cloud of dust par2cles at a
low rela2ve velocity. The same sort of collisions of dust
par2cles with larger objects are believed to be responsible for
the accre2on ridges observed on some of the small moons of
Saturn.

The capture side u2lizes two half CAPTURE!

hemispheres to enclose the accre2ng
mechanism!
object and the dust. The half
hemispheres have a natural tendency
to stay in a closed posi2on due to an
extension spring, but a locking bar
holds it in an open posi2on. When the
accre2ng par2cle is ready to be
enclosed, a switch to the muscle wire
is triggered to pull the locking bar
back.

UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA

CENTER FOR MICROGRAVITY RESEARCH

FLIGHT TESTING!
The Collisional Accre2on Experiment is slated to y on a four
day campaign aboard a NASA funded parabolic ight. The
experiment will experience approximately 30 seconds of
microgravity forty 2mes during a single ight. This ight tes2ng
will allow the experiment to be tested in ideal space condi2ons
that cannot be experienced on Earth. CATE is slated to y on
between July 18th and July 25th in year 2014.

STORAGE UNIT!
The storage unit of CATE is
comprised
of
80/20
aluminum and PVC. The
structure is 24x24x24 inches
in dimension and will house
twelve payloads during
ight. The payloads will be
held in the PVC tubes, which
will be cut in half, which
gives it the ability to swing
open when the locking
mechanism is released. The
storage unit also doubles as
lkasdjW
an experimental table. The top of the unit will include an area
for the chosen payload to be strapped down during tes2ng, as
well as the camera system for video data. The payload will be
held in a latching strap. For video data, there will be two GoPro
cameras lming at 60 fps, 90 degrees from each other. This will
allow the analysts to study the accre2ng object at all angles.

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND

SPACE ADMINISTRATION