Architecting multi-satellite formation flying clusters to detect and locate electronic warfare emitters across maritime and terrestrial domains.
Illegal fishing vessels and sanctioned oil tankers frequently deactivate their automated identification system (AIS) transponders to evade maritime authorities. However, to navigate through foggy channels or open seas, these vessels must keep their X-band or S-band navigation radars transmitting continuously.
OrbitGeolocation deploys tight clusters of three satellites flying in precise triangular formations separated by 50 to 100 kilometers. When an emitter pulses on the ocean surface, the RF wavefront reaches each spacecraft at slightly different timestamps (measured in nanoseconds) and Doppler frequencies. ``` +-----------------------+ Wavefront Delay +-----------------------+ | Satellite Alpha (Sat1)| --------------------------------> | CAF Correlator Engine | | Time: t1, Freq: f1 | | Tau = t2 - t1 (TDoA) | +-----------------------+ | Delta = f2 - f1 (FDoA)| | +-----------------------+ v | +-----------------------+ v | Satellite Beta (Sat2) | Elliptical Target Fix | Time: t2, Freq: f2 | < 200m Position Error +-----------------------+ ```
By computing the 2D Cross-Ambiguity Function (CAF) over laser-synchronized I/Q samples exchanged between satellites, OrbitGeolocation localizes non-cooperative radar emitters to within a 150-meter ellipse from 600 kilometers in space.