Rapid Discovery of Very Faint Space Objects

Current space situational awareness systems face significant challenges in tracking objects without precise prior information—particularly when targets are small or distant, such as objects in cislunar space, small maneuverable platforms, and orbital debris. A method that has traditionally proven effective for un-cued detections of faint objects is the track-before-detect or synthetic tracking approach, which aggregates a target’s signal across multiple frames to improve the signal-to-noise ratio for detection. However, the computational complexity of track-before-detect methods increases rapidly with search volume, making them inefficient for large-scale or real-time applications.

This project introduces a novel and versatile search and detection capability adaptable to diverse sensing platforms and orbital regimes. Beyond improving ground-based telescope performance, it also opens the door to next-generation space-based sensing architectures, overcoming key limitations of traditional detection techniques. The broader impact of this research extends beyond space domain awareness—enabling new ways to discover small solar system bodies and strengthening efforts in planetary defense and planetary science.

Supported by the DARPA Young Faculty Award