- HEOCam
- HDMAX
- Starnav1
- Khalstar
- Aercam
- ISCM
- Wireless
- SSACS
|
Space Situational Awareness Camera System (SSACS)
The objective of the six-month Space Situational Awareness Study was to explore the concept feasibility, present a system concept, and develop the requirements for the Space Situational Awareness Camera System (SSACS). This was accomplished by the STC under contract to Schafer Corporation (contract SC-03A-22-08). Three questions were posed in the study: 1) is it feasible for a Star Tracker (ST) to function as a situational awareness sensor? 2) what is a concept for employing current assets in the situational awareness role? 3) what are the requirements that define a concept for a SSACS? These questions were answered by assessing current ST technology with respect to their capability to detect, track, and image objects. To support the study, a functional decomposition of a ST was accomplished and those functions compared to the functions needed to provide object detection, tracking and imaging. The results of the study indicated that the potential exists for STs to detect, and possibly track and image, objects (non-stars) in the ST field of view (FOV). Our study supports the development of a SSACS that is a distributed, multi-mode, image processing based system. The STC developed concept permits the SSACS to function in a Multi-mode, that is, capable of both attitude determination and situational awareness by detecting objects, tracking objects, and potentially imaging objects in the FOV. The study conclusion was that ST technology can provide space situational awareness (SSA) as supported by the data in our final report. STs that actively image can, through the use of image processing techniques, discern objects (non-stars) from background noise. These STs have the potential to also track objects and provide orbital elements, given a sufficient number of observations over a portion of the orbit. Lastly, at close range appropriately designed or modified STs can image objects, providing a .picture. of the object. |
   |