Automatic super agile small-satellite operations

In this project we will develop and test technology for the automatisation of operation of small satellites. Multiple satellites can be coordinated for carrying out a mission, but given constraints on both available time, energy, communication capacity and control of the attitude of the satellites, and in addition that the mission can change rapidly, this is a difficult problem to handle manually. It is desirable to find an optimal plan for such a mission, and we will therefore develop methods for doing this automatically. The proposed solutions will be tested on NTNUs own HYPSO-satellites.

Earth observation (EO) and surveillance techniques have traditionally been developed using instruments carried by aircraft and monolithic governmental satellites. In contrast to this, a disruptive democratization of the airspace as well as low-earth orbits (LEO) is now taking place, where unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and small satellites developed with ‘New-space’ philosophy provide capabilities that are complementary to the conventional assets and offer added value due to their flexibility and adaptability for a given use case. A low cost per asset allows for deployment of UAV swarms and small satellite constellations that lead to completely new and agile capabilities, concepts of operation (CONOPS), and cycles for design and deployment of satellites in a constellation. Such new CONOPS enable dynamic expansion and changes to the swarms and constellations to meet future needs. Moreover, it enables highly dynamic event- or customer-driven allocation of target areas in real time, surveillance capability with low-latency delivery of customized data products to end users, and real-time coordinated operations between satellites in the constellation. Our vision is therefore to release the disruptive potential of small satellites, and constellations thereof, by enabling super-agile CONOPS. In this project we will develop technology and in-orbit proof of concept using our own HYPSO satellite program, and maritime surveillance case study in collaboration with our partners, KSAT and Space Norway. We expect that significant benefits are to be gained by considering all of them in a holistic approach, as the different aspects are coupled through common constraints and resources such as energy/power, time and pointing. The need for agility, low latency, priorities across stakeholders and end-users, and handling of dynamic target requests adds significantly to the complexity of planning, which calls for automation.