Advanced Space Demonstrates Successful Use of AI in Cislunar Space with CAPSTONE Mission

Advanced Space Demonstrates Successful Use of AI in Cislunar Space with CAPSTONE Mission

Advanced Space, a leading space tech solutions company announced the successful use of machine learning in cislunar space. The Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (CAPSTONE) spacecraft has been busy testing new software that is laying the groundwork for a substantial and transformative advance in autonomous navigation in orbit.

SigmaZero is a Neural Network (NN) enabled software suite that enables the detection of problems with spacecraft navigation – for example, identifying and labeling small accelerations that could drive the spacecraft off course if not accounted for correctly. More importantly, SigmaZero helps spacecraft perform vital activities like orbit determination in conditions where ground controllers are not readily available; this sort of capability will be needed to support the long-term exploration, development, and settlement of space. This is part of a study for the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) under the MicroE4AI (Microelectronics for Artificial Intelligence) program. The capabilities of SigmaZero build upon the Advanced Space mission of developing cutting-edge technologies like machine learning (ML) that improve onboard spacecraft autonomy.

IARPA's Response

"We are excited to learn of the SigmaZero experimental results as they represent a significant milestone in the lifecycle of our MicroE4AI program," said IARPA Director, Dr. Catherine Marsh. "Launched in 2021, MicroE4AI's goal is to develop resilient computing tools that drive innovation in microelectronics, hardware, software, and algorithm-architecture. We are grateful to our teams of performers, including Advanced Space, who are working diligently to help us meet our program's goals."

The Experiments

On January 29, Advanced Space executed an onboard test of the SigmaZero software onboard CAPSTONE. The goal of this experiment was to demonstrate anomaly classification on a spacecraft using SigmaZero. When completed, the CAPSTONE computer downlinked the neural network output as telemetry packets, and the Advanced Space team verified that the result precisely matched the ground-computed solution. In this case, the input consisted of simulated data where the spacecraft performed a small maneuver that was not accounted for in the navigation algorithm (Kalman filter).

Additionally, on March 10, we conducted a second test of SigmaZero on CAPSTONE. This time we tested one example each of 9 anomaly classes, including: mismodeled gravity field, spinning spacecraft, outgassing, momentum desaturation maneuver, mismodeled finite burn, radio dropout, mismodeled solar radiation pressure, mismodeled atmospheric drag, and nominal. As with the first test, the inputs are simulated data of spacecraft in Earth orbit where the navigation algorithm fails in subtle ways. Although the current version of SigmaZero is trained on Earth-orbiting data, the technology is applicable equally in cislunar and interplanetary environments. Once again, the Advanced Space team downlinked the neural network model outputs and verified that all 9 test cases precisely matched the expected values.

The Implications

Dr. Nathan Ré, Principal Engineer and Project Lead for SigmaZero explained, "Whether used on the ground or in space, SigmaZero instantaneously draws insights from spacecraft navigation data that traditionally have required the detailed review of a human expert. As spaceflight activity continues to grow exponentially, automation is essential to safe, reliable operations."

"These tests demonstrate the effectiveness of our process to bring state-of-the-art machine learning models quickly to the essential 'edge' device: a small satellite near the Moon. Leveraging ML gives us an order-of-magnitude improvement in the time and cost required for flight software development and testing," added Tyler Hanf, Software Engineer.

And although it wasn't the main purpose of these experiments, the upload and simulation work also may provide insights into better managing and deploying new flight software (specifically Core Flight System applications) to CAPSTONE throughout its extended mission phase.

Click here to learn more about CAPSTONE Mission.

Publisher: SatNow
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GNSS Constellations - A list of all GNSS satellites by constellations

beidou

Satellite NameOrbit Date
BeiDou-3 G4Geostationary Orbit (GEO)17 May, 2023
BeiDou-3 G2Geostationary Orbit (GEO)09 Mar, 2020
Compass-IGSO7Inclined Geosynchronous Orbit (IGSO)09 Feb, 2020
BeiDou-3 M19Medium Earth Orbit (MEO)16 Dec, 2019
BeiDou-3 M20Medium Earth Orbit (MEO)16 Dec, 2019
BeiDou-3 M21Medium Earth Orbit (MEO)23 Nov, 2019
BeiDou-3 M22Medium Earth Orbit (MEO)23 Nov, 2019
BeiDou-3 I3Inclined Geosynchronous Orbit (IGSO)04 Nov, 2019
BeiDou-3 M23Medium Earth Orbit (MEO)22 Sep, 2019
BeiDou-3 M24Medium Earth Orbit (MEO)22 Sep, 2019

galileo

Satellite NameOrbit Date
GSAT0223MEO - Near-Circular05 Dec, 2021
GSAT0224MEO - Near-Circular05 Dec, 2021
GSAT0219MEO - Near-Circular25 Jul, 2018
GSAT0220MEO - Near-Circular25 Jul, 2018
GSAT0221MEO - Near-Circular25 Jul, 2018
GSAT0222MEO - Near-Circular25 Jul, 2018
GSAT0215MEO - Near-Circular12 Dec, 2017
GSAT0216MEO - Near-Circular12 Dec, 2017
GSAT0217MEO - Near-Circular12 Dec, 2017
GSAT0218MEO - Near-Circular12 Dec, 2017

glonass

Satellite NameOrbit Date
Kosmos 2569--07 Aug, 2023
Kosmos 2564--28 Nov, 2022
Kosmos 2559--10 Oct, 2022
Kosmos 2557--07 Jul, 2022
Kosmos 2547--25 Oct, 2020
Kosmos 2545--16 Mar, 2020
Kosmos 2544--11 Dec, 2019
Kosmos 2534--27 May, 2019
Kosmos 2529--03 Nov, 2018
Kosmos 2527--16 Jun, 2018

gps

Satellite NameOrbit Date
Navstar 82Medium Earth Orbit19 Jan, 2023
Navstar 81Medium Earth Orbit17 Jun, 2021
Navstar 78Medium Earth Orbit22 Aug, 2019
Navstar 77Medium Earth Orbit23 Dec, 2018
Navstar 76Medium Earth Orbit05 Feb, 2016
Navstar 75Medium Earth Orbit31 Oct, 2015
Navstar 74Medium Earth Orbit15 Jul, 2015
Navstar 73Medium Earth Orbit25 Mar, 2015
Navstar 72Medium Earth Orbit29 Oct, 2014
Navstar 71Medium Earth Orbit02 Aug, 2014

irnss

Satellite NameOrbit Date
NVS-01Geostationary Orbit (GEO)29 May, 2023
IRNSS-1IInclined Geosynchronous Orbit (IGSO)12 Apr, 2018
IRNSS-1HSub Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (Sub-GTO)31 Aug, 2017
IRNSS-1GGeostationary Orbit (GEO)28 Apr, 2016
IRNSS-1FGeostationary Orbit (GEO)10 Mar, 2016
IRNSS-1EGeosynchronous Orbit (IGSO)20 Jan, 2016
IRNSS-1DInclined Geosynchronous Orbit (IGSO)28 Mar, 2015
IRNSS-1CGeostationary Orbit (GEO)16 Oct, 2014
IRNSS-1BInclined Geosynchronous Orbit (IGSO)04 Apr, 2014
IRNSS-1AInclined Geosynchronous Orbit (IGSO)01 Jul, 2013