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 release, Slingshot announced it had been “selected by AFWERX to support its Rapid Analysis of Photometric Tracks for space Object identification and behavior Recognition program.”
“Under RAPTOR, Slingshot will use machine learning to track, analyze and report on behaviors of objects in low Earth orbit,” Slingshot Aerospace stated. “Initially RAPTOR will be used to track and maintain custody of space objects of interest to U.S. Space Command, enabling timely reporting on events that could indicate an imminent satellite maneuver or mission change.”
According to the press release, Slingshot Aerospace’s RAPTOR program will be part of AFWERZ’s Small Business Innovation Research’s phase two program. The company noted that it currently has a catalog of roughly 14,500 “active spacecraft and debris” through its “globally deployed network of optical sensors.”
Slingshot Aerospace claimed in its press release that its censors generate over 4.5 million photometric observations 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 press release noted that the U.S. military can use the RAPTOR program to track satellites and other objects of interest, detect anomalies and unexpected satellite movements, and identify new satellites that are launched into orbit.
“Protecting our national interests demands the utmost focus on maintaining dominance and situational awareness in the space domain,” Slingshot Aerospace CEO Tim Solms said. “The Department of Defense must achieve comprehensive visibility and intelligence on covert and adversarial activities in space. RAPTOR delivers unparalleled awareness to safeguard critical assets, strengthen mission readiness, and uphold the security of our nation and its allies.”
In Wednesday’s press release, 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 network, we can identify unexpected behavior and use those insights to support our partners’ defense missions.”
Source: American Military News
