TransAstra's 6th Patent This Year Allows for Tracking of Dark, Fast-Moving Space Objects
LOS ANGELES, September 11, 2023 (Newswire.com) - TransAstra, an innovating pioneer in space technology, announces its latest patent, "Optimized Matched Filter Tracking of Space Objects." OMFT is a transformative advancement that turns low-cost telescopes into formidable tools, allowing for the detection of dark, rapidly moving objects in space.
TransAstra's latest invention optimizes system performance by adjusting both observational strategy and details of how images are processed. The result is unparalleled telescope performance for finding and tracking dim, moving targets in space with small, low-cost telescopes backed by affordable, fieldable computers. By adjusting exposure periods and the number of exposures stacked together under the constraints of allowable computation time, this invention automatically selects from proprietary pixel binning strategies to substantially improve the survey detection capability of virtually any sensor system.
TransAstra will be entering into licensing arrangements for its latest invention with those who seek to improve their space object detection capabilities under the brand name "TheiaTM" —after the Greek goddess of sight and vision. Theia improves the ability of sensing systems to detect objects in low earth orbit, geo-stationary orbit, and beyond cislunar space. Importantly, it will also provide the astronomy community with the ability to detect many more of the nearly 1 billion very small near-Earth asteroids whose location is currently unknown.
Theia is just one part of TransAstra's suite of space domain awareness solutions. TransAstra recently entered into a contract with the U.S. Space Force to build its first "Sutter Turnkey Observatory," or Sutter TKO. Each Sutter TKO will be a complete, self-contained, modular astronomical observatory containing up to 18 Celestron RASA 11" telescopes and their mounts, all built into a modified shipping container. Sutter TKO, when combined with Theia and TransAstra's other innovations, will allow for unprecedented visibility of the night sky at a fraction of the expense of much larger systems.
"Sutter TKO, our remotely operable observatory, is a huge stride in space domain awareness and asteroid detection," explained Dr. Joel Sercel, CEO of TransAstra. "Engineered to work in any remote location with electrical power, it obviates the need for established observatories. One Sutter TKO system can survey an impressive +2,800 square degrees of the sky per night with three revisitations. Remarkably compact, two Sutter TKO units can be transported using a standard 40' truck. With Starlink connectivity, and later their own solar power installations, we will be able to deploy and operate TKOs virtually anywhere on Earth."
Later this month, TransAstra will unveil additional details about Sutter TKO at the Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies (AMOS) Conference in Maui, Hawaii. Designed to serve a diverse customer set, Sutter TKO is primed to captivate not only the scientific and astronomy sectors but also stakeholders keen on space domain awareness solutions and planetary defense against asteroid impactors. TransAstra plans to start taking orders for Sutter TKO this Fall.
The issuance of the latest patent continues an exceptional period for TransAstra. Already this year, TransAstra has earned six patents and has booked contracts approaching $5 million from Space Force and NASA. These patents and contracts cover TransAstra's Sutter, Flytrap Capture Bag, and Omnivore propulsion systems technologies. TransAstra has now been issued 11 patents, covering the entirety of its technology stack. Sercel says he is expecting eight more patents in the coming months.
For more comprehensive details about TransAstra's innovations or for inquiries on Sutter TKO systems, Theia licensing, or any of TransAstra's technologies, reach out to missions@transastra.com.
Source: TransAstra
