SST Sensors and Processing

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Expected Outcomes:

This SST topic contributes to ensuring full and optimal capacity of the EUSST Partnership once the latter is set up. Its outcomes are expected to build on previous and ongoing actions and aim at achieving full capacity of the EUSST Partnership by end 2024.

Projects are expected to contribute to the following outcomes:

Supporting the upgrade and development of on-ground assets, in particular radars and telescopes as well as data processing.

SST radiofrequency & optical sensors (radars, telescopes, etc.) technological research and innovation: due to the increased number of objects (both active and debris) to be handled, as well as the evolution of EUSST services in the future, R&I activities are necessary in the sensor domain, both for radiofrequency sensors (e.g. passive ranging, radars, etc.) and optical sensors (e.g. telescopes, innovative wide field optical sensors, lasers, etc.). New promising technologies like sensors based on the use of infrared will also be considered.

• Contribute to a consolidated and efficient EUSST sensor function.
• Improve the coverage area, geographical location and performance they can offer (e.g. field of view, limiting magnitude, frequency-band, accuracy, timeliness of the associated processing, etc.)
• Ensure an optimal evolution of the configuration and use of the EUSST sensors network, including necessary raw data processing required to provide measurement data.
• Improve the integration and connectivity of value-added sensors, ensuring their compliance to the minimum quality requirements (including protocols, procedures, formats and calibration status).

SST data processing research and innovation (e.g. Artificial Intelligence): developments in the space environment raise the need to adapt current algorithms and data processing methods and tools as well as to look for new ones.

• Include or at least explore the possibility of using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in any SST data processing (e.g. improvement of object detection capability; of probability of collision accuracy)
• Develop automatic sensor scheduling and tasking, and data processing functions

Scope:

This SST topic contributes to ensuring full and optimal capacity of the EUSST Partnership once the latter is set up. Its scope is expected to build on previous and ongoing actions and aims at achieving full capacity of the EUSST Partnership by end 2024.

To ensure that the sensors and data processing used in the SST domain can properly address the upcoming requirements in all aspects, the following R&I activities need to be addressed in order to tackle the above expected outcomes:

1. Adapt and improve technologies already in use in SST sensors such as radars, telescopes and lasers.
2. Improve sensors performances (e.g. measurements quality such as noise, bias, measurements rates, and tracks quality such as track accuracy, track duration).
3. Specify, develop, test and pre-integrate improved sensors.
4. Develop innovations for detection of smaller objects and higher processing capabilities (e.g. networked telescopes for LEO coverage, improved tracking by lasers in daylight).
5. Develop new detection strategies to cope with an increased number/size of objects in the sensors’ Field of Regard/Field of View.
6. Explore new technologies and/or processing algorithms and techniques to develop and implement potential new services developed in HORIZON-CL4-2024-SSA-SST-MS New & Improved EUSST Missions and Services topic (e.g. support to manoeuvres, detection of malfunctioning spacecraft).
7. Improve algorithms (e.g. measurements correlation, Initial Orbit Determination, covariance estimation) for a more agile and accurate cataloguing of the growing space objects population and increasing services provision (e.g. collision avoidance, support to manoeuvres and identification of in-orbit anomalies).
8. Improve algorithms for data fusion for a more efficient use of data and information coming from different sensors on the same object.
9. Improve computation models of collision probability.
10. Develop evaluation methods for collision probability that could be applied to constellations (e.g. multiple encounters).
11. Improve or develop new object propagation models for efficient propagation of the orbital population (e.g. cloud propagation models to propagate the debris cloud generated after a fragmentation).
12. Advance coordinated scheduling and tasking of sensors to progress towards a more efficient use of multiple available resources at system level.
13. Improve algorithms for objects characterisation.
14. Consider any promising technology for precise tracking and data processing.

As the legal entities (the “Constituting National Entities”) identified below are bodies designated by Member States, under their responsibility, to participate in the SST Partnership within the meaning of Articles 56 & 57 of the “Regulation (EU) 2021/696 of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the space programme of the Union and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme”, and under the same Regulation (EU) 2021/696 the Member States are identified as beneficiaries, this grant is awarded without a call for proposals in accordance with Article 195(d) of the EU Financial Regulation 2018/1046 and Article 20 of the Horizon Europe Framework Programme and Rules for Participation.

In this action the integration of the gender dimension (sex and gender analysis) in research and innovation content is not a mandatory requirement.

Implementation: Innovation Action with reduced funding rate (45%) (IA)

Note: specific conditions apply to this action.