Preliminary study of contaminant particulates around Skylab

Abstract

Techniques originally developed for the Skylab T025 contamination experiment were applied to S052 white-light coronagraph data in a preliminary study to investigate particulates around Skylab. Periods were selected which contained some contamination, even though there were no apparent dumps or vents during these periods. Velocity and size distributions were determined from optical data for particles within 200 meters of the spacecraft. Both photographic (61 particle tracks) and video (34 particles) observations yield an upper limit on particle radius of 100 micrometers. Selected photometric data from the S073 zodiacal light experiment during mission SL-2 were also examined for evidence of contamination