Orbital Collision: An Indigenously Developed Web-based Space Situational Awareness Platform

TL;DR

This paper introduces Orbital Collision (OrCo), a web-based platform developed in India to predict space object collisions using TLE data, addressing orbital congestion and enhancing space situational awareness.

Contribution

It presents an indigenous, comprehensive SSA platform that integrates orbital propagation and collision probability calculations for improved space traffic management.

Findings

Platform achieves accurate collision predictions.

Efficient in processing large TLE datasets.

Enhances satellite safety in congested orbits.

Abstract

This work presents an indigenous web based platform Orbital Collision (OrCo), created by the Space Systems Laboratory at IIIT Delhi, to enhance Space Situational Awareness (SSA) by predicting collision probabilities of space objects using Two Line Elements (TLE) data. The work highlights the growing challenges of congestion in the Earth's orbital environment, mainly due to space debris and defunct satellites, which increase collision risks. It employs several methods for propagating orbital uncertainty and calculating the collision probability. The performance of the platform is evaluated through accuracy assessments and efficiency metrics, in order to improve the tracking of space objects and ensure the safety of the satellite in congested space.