Slingshot Aerospace confirmed on Wednesday that the U. S. Air Force’s AFWERX program has contracted with the space data analytics company to “fingerprint ” satellites orbiting the Earth by using artificial intelligence and photometric data.
In a Wednesday press transfer, Slingshot announced it had been “selected by AFWERX to aid its Rapid Analysis of Photometric Tracks for space Subject recognition and conduct Recognition system. ”
“ Under RAPTOR, Slingshot will use machine learning to track, analyze and report on behaviors of objects in low Earth orbit, ” Slingshot Aerospace stated. “Initially Falcon will be used to record and preserve guardianship of space objects of interest to U. S. Space Command, enabling timely monitoring on events that may show an immediate satellite movement or vision change. ”
According to the media release, Slingshot Aerospace’s RAPTOR program may be part of AFWERZ’s Small Business Innovation Research’s phase two system. The company noted that it presently has a library of about 14,500 “active aircraft and debris ” through its “globally deployed system of visual cameras. ”
Slingshot Aerospace claimed in its media release that its judges generate over 4. 5 million radiometric measurements every night. The company said that analyzing the photometric observations and the “light curves ” recorded by the sensors allows it to “create a unique digital fingerprint ” for each object detected. Slingshot Aerospace added that the “digital fingerprint ” can then be used by the company ’s Agatha AI model to “identify changes like shifts in an object’s orientation in space or its photometric signature. ”
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Wednesday’s media transfer noted that the U. S. government can use the Falcon software to track spacecraft and other objects of interest, detect anomalies and sudden satellite movements, and discover new satellites that are launched into orbit.
“Protecting our national interests demands the utmost emphasis on maintaining hegemony and situational awareness in the storage area, ” Slingshot Aerospace CEO Tim Solms said. “The Department of Defense may reach complete visibility and intelligence on secret and hostile activities in space. Bird delivers unprecedented knowledge to secure important assets, develop objective readiness, and uphold the security of our nation and its allies. ”
In Wednesday’s media transfer, Dr. Dylan Kesler, Slingshot Aerospace’s vice president of data science, said that creating a “comprehensive fingerprint database” for objects in Earth’s orbit ” allows the company to “precisely identify an object’s nature and infer its potential mission objectives. ”
Kesler added, “By applying machine learning across our system, we can discover sudden behavior and use those insight to support our companions ’ security operations. ”
