Satellite technology paves way for space traffic management

Satellite technology paves way for space traffic management
by Erica Marchand
Paris, France (SPX) Jan 26, 2025
The European Space Agency's Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) Test Facilities at the ESTEC technical centre in the Netherlands have been pivotal in supporting Lithuanian company Blackswan Space in testing their autonomous satellite navigation technology. The collaboration focused on the use of the GRALS (Guidance, Navigation, and Control Rendezvous, Approach, and Landing Simulator), which is designed to simulate real-world space conditions.

Blackswan's Vision-Based Navigation (VBN) system, powered by AI, enables satellites to autonomously identify, approach, or avoid objects in space. This system functions similarly to self-driving cars on Earth, significantly enhancing space traffic management and satellite servicing capabilities.

Marius Klimavicius, founder and CEO of Blackswan Space, emphasized the growing relevance of this technology: "As the satellite numbers are growing rapidly, such capability is key in enabling us to not only better manage the increasing space traffic, but also service satellites that need repairs or are simply out of fuel. We see a growing demand for our product as the new market of in-orbit servicing emerges."

Irene Huertas Garcia, ESA's GNC System Engineer, elaborated on the importance of real-world testing: "At the beginning stages of vision-based technology developments, space scenarios are simulated using software. As maturity of the developed solution increases, we need a more representative real-world 'hardware-in-the-loop' testing in visual conditions resembling space. GRALS enables such test conditions, including darkened surroundings and a Sun-like light source as required."

Joris Belhadj from the GNC Test Facilities added further detail on the testing process: "The lab's model satellite - called BlackGEO - has been manufactured to contain typical elements of a geostationary satellite's topography, with characteristic satellite surface materials including multi-layer insulation and solar cells to enhance its optical representativity. The satellite was also produced by Blackswan under ESA contract, and any customers of our laboratory can now make use of it."

Thanks to the facilities at ESTEC, Blackswan Space successfully demonstrated how Vision Based Navigation can aid in space traffic management and in-orbit servicing. Their testing was made possible through ESA's General Support Technology Programme (GSTP).

The Lithuanian Space delegation has played an essential role in the partnership, committing to further funding to advance Blackswan's VBN system to TRL 6 within the next year. A key milestone will be an in-orbit demonstration mission scheduled for 2027.

ESA is concurrently advancing its own in-orbit servicing mission, RISE, which aims to service telecommunications satellites in geostationary orbit.