Abstract
We propose that a sampling device with a cylindrical corer for the acquisition of surface samples be used to penetrate in a primitive body exploration mission. The system's penetration mechanism would consist of a circular tube with a thin wall. Based on past experimental studies, we can assume that the device's penetration depth would be proportional to its mass and velocity to the 1.5 power. (This is designated as effectiveness). An analysis of the penetration angle's effect on the device's penetration coefficient has already been carried out by defining the term penetration performance, which accounts for the device's performance coefficient (Cp), a dimensionless quantity of the depth, and the angle of attack, α, the angle between the velocity and attitude vectors during penetration. Furthermore, α has been defined as equivalent to hasuji-the orbit at the edge of a sword in Japanese martial arts-which is known to affect cutting abilities greatly. We therefore analyzed the cutting motion of Japanese swords using a high-speed camera and applied the results to the proposed corer's design to improve its performance.
