Grumman delivered a ground demonstration unit of the Beam Builder to NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama in 1978 for testing.
The flight version of the Grumman Beam Builder was intended to be considerably lighter and to use flight-qualified, higher-reliability parts instead of off-the-shelf components.
The Beam Builder concept used pre-cleaned flat aluminum alloy feedstock 16.2 centimeters (6.375 inches) wide and 0.04 centimeters (0.016 inches) thick that could be up to 300 meters long.
NASA selected a pierce-and-fold fastening system for further Beam Builder development because it required minimal energy, little or no maintenance, no additional materials like rivets or staples, and no continuous adjustment.
NASA conducted neutral buoyancy tests at the Marshall Space Flight Center’s Neutral Buoyancy Simulator using truss structures and a Beam Builder mockup mounted to a simulated Shuttle payload bay.
The Grumman Beam Builder was designed to be carried in the Space Shuttle payload bay and fabricate triangular truss beams of aluminum alloy up to 300 meters (984 feet) long.
Grumman’s ground demonstration Beam Builder manufactured 1.5-meter-long bays and produced beams composed of 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 10, 11, and 12 bays during testing.
Researchers will create models to simulate plasma discharge and the interaction of the plasma beam with surfaces to maximize momentum transfer to satellite debris.
The goal of the Ion Beam Shepherd method is to push target objects into a 'graveyard orbit' where they will burn up.
The ion beam system will be tested in the space simulation facilities at the I. Physical Institute of JLU.
The interaction of the ion beam with relevant satellite materials will be examined to evaluate the efficiency of momentum transfer.
The properties of the ion beam will be determined under space conditions and compared with modeling.
The EU project ALBATOR aims to develop a novel technology for the removal of space debris using a plasma beam.
The plasma beam system will consist of an electron cyclotron resonance plasma source, necessary electronics, command and control systems, and gas regulation units.
The ALBATOR project focuses on the design and development of the corresponding plasma beam system.
The Ion Beam Shepherd method is based on momentum transfer using a plasma beam composed of high-energy particles.
A Stirling engine was successfully used in February 2024 to improve the efficiency of a high-power microwave beam weapon.
In March 2023, Chinese scientists reported developing capabilities generating power levels of 10 gigawatts for high-power microwave beam weapons.
Multiple beam torus antennas (MBTAs) are present at the GRU site in Klimovsk, the FSB site in Dubovyy Rynok, and the former KGB site in Dobroaleksandrovka.
Optical Surfaces Ltd. developed a new approach using a series of pre-aligned beam collimator sub-assemblies for Modulation Transfer Function (MTF) testing of large-diameter military optical systems.