CloudSat - Dodging Weaving Orbital Debris

Satellites in Earth orbit face increasing threats from orbital debris. CloudSat operations at 705km required regular conjunction assessment screenings and risk mitigation maneuvers to avoid orbital debris. Following the failure of a reac-tion wheel CloudSat was maneuvered to a lower orbit, which presented a new environment for orbital debris mitigation. During the final months of the mis-sion CloudSat performed five risk mitigation maneuvers in five months, far ex-ceeding the cadence of risk mitigation maneuvers for the entire mission. This paper will discuss the history of CloudSat orbital debris mitigation measures over the life of the nearly eighteen-year mission.