Global Trends in Space Situational Awareness (SSA) and Space Traffic Management (STM)
Abstract
By the end of 2017, there were over 1,700 active satellitessome of them the size of a breadboxin orbit around Earth, approximately twice as many as there were 15 years ago. Between 2018 and 2026, at least another 3,000 satellites are expected to be launched: two-thirds for various commercial organizations, and the remaining third for civilian and military agencies in over 60 countries. The worlds dependence on space is growing, in particular for critical national security uses, as well as economic and societal services and infrastructure. The resulting vulnerabilities to any disruptions caused if the space assets do not perform as planned is leading to mounting interest in and need for capabilities to track and monitor objects in spacenot just the satellites themselves but the total number of objects including space debris. There is also concern that tracking and surveillance capabilities have not kept pace with the need for these services. Maintaining accurate and precise awareness of the locations of satellites and debris and the environment around them, in addition to ensuring operation free from radiofrequency interference, is increasingly being seen as critical for safe and sustainable operations in space.Until recently, the United States Department of Defense (DoD) was the only organization in the worldoutside, perhaps, of Russiato develop high-fidelity space situational awareness(SSA) information. Today, DoD shares varying levels of this information freely with satellite operators across sectors globally. The DoD system is based on a legacy architecture that originated as part of a missile warning system in an era where there were relatively few objects in space, typically operating in predictable orbits and engaging in predictable activities.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 2018
- Accession Number
- AD1123106
Entities
People
- Asha Balakrishnan
- Becaja M. Caldwell
- Bhavya Lal
- Reina S. Buenconsejo
- Sara A. Carioscia
Organizations
- Institute for Defense Analyses