Review
Open access
Oct 2026
Space Tribology of Mechanical Systems: Environmental Challenges, Lubrication Strategies, and Future Directions
The mechanical systems of modern spacecraft, such as bearings, gear trains, actuators, deployment mechanisms, and slip rings, operate in an environment that is fundamentally hostile to conventional tribological practice. Factors like high vacuum eliminate the atmospheric boundary layers that protect terrestrial contact...
Lincoln Pinoski, Ella Massey, Kenjiro Nakajima et al.
· Astronautics · 0 citations