Abstract
Because of recent advancements in space technologies, easier and more economical access to space, and an increase in commercial interests, the near-Earth space environment has witnessed an exploding number of objects being put into orbit. In particular, the low Earth orbit (LEO) region is at an increased risk of orbital collisions from large satellite constellation projects. Thus, monitoring LEO objects for space situational awareness and space traffic management has become increasingly imperative. In this paper, we use the concept of limited-CDF (cumulative distribution function) surface and mutual information for designing sensor tasking algorithms focusing on regular observation of known catalog LEO objects (follow-up). Observations are carried out using a simulated ground-based optical telescope. The simulations are representative of realistic observation processes. We investigate how data from passive space-based sensors can be used to improve the follow-up performance of the telescope. A sensor-tasking framework is developed in which we conduct a comparative study to assess how different types of satellite constellation patterns such as Walker-delta and Walker-star affect the overall sensor tasking performance. Several case studies are carried out to address the following points: (1) what are the appropriate characteristics of the parameters to be optimized and how does it impact the evolution of orbital state uncertainties?, (2) compare different traditional and non-traditional algorithms for sensor tasking problem, (3) investigate the effect of measurements from different constellation configurations of passive space-based sensor, and (4) what is an appropriate coordinate system for the limited-CDF surface?
Recommended Citation
S. Nandan Paul and H. W. Lee, "Sensor Tasking for Low Earth Orbit Objects: Leveraging Space Sensor Data for Ground-Based Optical Observations," AIAA SciTech Forum and Exposition, 2024, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Jan 2024.
The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2024-1677
Department(s)
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Publication Status
Full Access
International Standard Book Number (ISBN)
978-162410711-5
Document Type
Article - Conference proceedings
Document Version
Citation
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2024 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, All rights reserved.
Publication Date
01 Jan 2024
