Laboratory drop towers for the experimental simulation of dust-aggregate collisions in the early solar system.

For the purpose of investigating the evolution of dust aggregates in the early Solar System, we developed two vacuum drop towers in which fragile dust aggregates with sizes up to ~10 cm and porosities up to 70% can be collided. One of the drop towers is primarily used for very low impact speeds down to below 0.01 m/sec and makes use of a double release mechanism. Collisions are recorded in stereo-view by two high-speed cameras, which fall along the glass vacuum tube in the center-of-mass frame of the two dust aggregates. The other free-fall tower makes use of an electromagnetic accelerator that is capable of gently accelerating dust aggregates to up to 5 m/sec. In combination with the release of another dust aggregate to free fall, collision speeds up to ~10 m/sec can be achieved. Here, two fixed high-speed cameras record the collision events. In both drop towers, the dust aggregates are in free fall during the collision so that they are weightless and match the conditions in the early Solar System.

The Suborbital Particle Aggregation and Collision Experiment (SPACE): studying the collision behavior of submillimeter-sized dust aggregates on the suborbital rocket flight REXUS 12.

The Suborbital Particle Aggregation and Collision Experiment (SPACE) is a novel approach to study the collision properties of submillimeter-sized, highly porous dust aggregates. The experiment was designed, built, and carried out to increase our knowledge about the processes dominating the first phase of planet formation. During this phase, the growth of planetary precursors occurs by agglomeration of micrometer-sized dust grains into aggregates of at least millimeters to centimeters in size. However, the formation of larger bodies from the so-formed building blocks is not yet fully understood. Recent numerical models on dust growth lack a particular support by experimental studies in the size range of submillimeters, because these particles are predicted to collide at very gentle relative velocities of below 1 cm/s that can only be achieved in a reduced-gravity environment. The SPACE experiment investigates the collision behavior of an ensemble of silicate-dust aggregates inside several evacuated glass containers which are being agitated by a shaker to induce the desired collisions at chosen velocities. The dust aggregates are being observed by a high-speed camera, allowing for the determination of the collision properties of the protoplanetary dust analog material. The data obtained from the suborbital flight with the REXUS (Rocket Experiments for University Students) 12 rocket will be directly implemented into a state-of-the-art dust growth and collision model.