Review of interactions of large space structures with the environment

Because very large spacecrafts are being proposed for future missions, spacecraft designers will face new problems related to spacecraft interactions with the environment. Two categories of spacecraft-environmental interactions are discussed. These are spacecraft passive, where the charged-particle environment acts on spacecraft surfaces/ and spacecraft active, where the spacecraft or its systems cause the interaction. Motion induced mechanical stresses in large spacecrafts, and high voltage, large power system interactions are considered. (5 diagrams, 13 graphs, 1 photo, 27 references)