The Problem This Solution Solves
Currently, there are more than 1,500 satellites, 17,000 objects greater than 10 centimeters in diameter, and more than 150 million smaller objects orbiting Earth. With debris traveling in excess of eight kilometers per second, even the smallest of these objects can cause significant damage and potentially disable a spacecraft in orbit. Moreover, space control and traffic management are manpower-intensive activities, requiring automation to improve capacity and safety.
The Solution
ExoAnalytic demonstrated significant operational utility to the national security space enterprise, specifically including the ability to maintain a catalog, dynamically task sensors, perform conjunction assessment, and provide custody during events such as launches, maneuvers, and relocations. The volume of observation data was roughly three times that delivered by existing Air Force electro-optical sensors. Finally, the large number of data consumers, enabled by leveraging the Unified Data Library, validated the utility of an “Open Architecture SSA Data Repository” as described by the June 2018 Presidential directive, Space Policy Directive-3: National Space Traffic Management Policy.