Long-term Sustainable Net-centric Framework for Space Surveillance Networks (LOSSLESS)

ABSTRACT: The United States Space Surveillance Network is a critical part of United States Strategic Command's (USSTRATCOM) mission and involves detecting, tracking, cataloging and identifying artificial objects orbiting Earth, i.e. active/inactive satellites, spent rocket bodies, or fragmentation debris. the modernization of the SSN faces three challenges: 1) how to seamless upgrade SSN with modern COTS hardware without software porting; 2) how to improve the accuracy of tracking target by collaborating geographically spread sensors; 3) how to dynamically schedule tasks to respond to unexpected space events. To address these problems, Intelligent Automation, Inc. proposes a Long-term Sustainable Net-centric Framework for Space Surveillance Networks (LOSSLESS). LOSSLESS can run both legacy and new software on top of modern COTS hardware by leveraging state-of-the-art Virtual Machine (VM) technologies. With proposed distributed net-centric data fusion algorithm, LOSSLESS can significantly improve the tracking accuracy of current SSN. LOSSLESS can also respond to unexpected dynamic space events based on an innovative dynamic tasking algorithm. In summary, the proposed LOSSLESS framework can meet the future requirement of space target tracking for the United States Space Surveillance Network. BENEFIT: The proposed solution has tremendous applications potential in dynamic military applications. The legacy system (both hardware and software) of United States Space Surveillance Network requires major investment of capital to re-host and rewrite the software for the upgrade. Similar cases happened for many military weapon systems (e.g., F-16 general avionics computer, AC-130H gunship mission computer SKC-3007A, MH-60K mission computer AP-102A, etc.). Potential applications of our proposed framework include United States Space Surveillance Network and military weapon system. The market size of the upgrading military legacy system may grow rapidly as more and more weapon systems'legacy computer system cannot meet the new mission requirements. Beyond DOD programs, we also plan to transition the technology to commercial applications. Potential applications of our proposed approach include commercial avionics radars and weather monitoring systems. The size of the market is quite large and may grow rapidly with the commercial demand of upgrade the system with modern COTS hardware.