Unmixing the Materials and Mechanics Contributions in Non-resolved Object Signatures

Abstract

Temporal behavior of a non-resolved resident space object [RSO] signature is a function of the abundance of its contributing materials. These abundances are, in turn, a function of the orbital behavior of the RSO. For example, in case of a spin-stabilized RSO, the abundances display a cyclic behavior. The present work uses a positive matrix factorization technique to extract the temporal variation of material abundances from hyperspectral or multi-spectral time-resolved signatures. A Fourier analysis of temporal variation of material abundance provides knowledge about the mechanics of the space object. This paper describes the unmixing and Fourier analysis process that, taken together, extract information about materials and mechanics from non-resolved RSO signatures. Unmixing results are presented for simulated hyperspectral signatures and for three- or four-color Johnson BVRI photometry observations data. These two situations cover the range of optics and sensor capabilities that may be available from a premier site for optical observations to a commercial-off-the-shelf small-aperture telescope site.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 2008
Accession Number
ADA532019

Entities

People

  • Anil Chaudhary
  • Craig Birkemeier
  • James Brown
  • Stephen Gregory
  • Tamara Payne

Organizations

  • Air Force Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force Research Laboratories
  • Algorithms
  • Artificial Satellites
  • Detectors
  • Ground Based
  • Materials
  • Mechanics
  • Observation
  • Photometry
  • Resident Space Objects
  • Solar Panels
  • Space Based
  • Space Objects
  • Space Surveillance
  • Spacecraft
  • Standards
  • Telescopes

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Astronomy/Astrophysics
  • Image Processing and Computer Vision.

Technology Areas

  • Space
  • Space - Space Objects