Submitting Campus

Daytona Beach

Department

Aerospace Engineering

Document Type

Conference Proceeding

Publication/Presentation Date

1-8-2026

Abstract/Description

In this paper, a high-fidelity simulation framework is developed to assess the feasibility of tracking space debris using a large low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation equipped with onboard passive radar sensors. By exploiting illumination from a distributed network of ground-based transmitters, the constellation provides consistent line-of-sight access to debris objects at higher altitudes, enabling angles-only detection and tracking. This approach yields a scalable, automated, and cost-effective architecture for next-generation space surveillance and contributes to more resilient space traffic management. A complete angles-only passive-radar orbit-determination pipeline is introduced and demonstrated. Initial orbital states are generated using a rate-aware constrained admissible-region multiple-hypothesis filter (CAR–MHF), which fuses short-arc azimuth/elevation measurements while enforcing physically consistent geometric constraints. Following initialization, a robust unscented Kalman filter (UKF) performs nonlinear state propagation and measurement fusion across the multi-sensor network. Update integrity is maintained through sigma-point Mahalanobis gating, dynamic per-measurement covariance scaling, and bounded innovations designed to suppress weak-geometry updates. A large-scale simulation is performed using realistic transmitter–receiver geometry and a heteroscedastic measurement model driven by bistatic SNR, off-boresight angle, and elevation-margin effects. The resulting performance demonstrates stable tracking behavior and multi-kilometer orbit-determination accuracy across a diverse test population, with select tracks achieving near-kilometer precision under favorable geometry. Results for measurement model validation , performance along with the tracking accuracy of the orbit determination algorithm are presented and analyzed in detail.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2026-1074

Location

Orlando, Florida

Paper Number

1074

Number of Pages

24

Grant or Award Name

ERAU Faculty Innovative Research in Science and Technology (FIRST) program (grant number GC87599)

Required Publisher’s Statement

Copyright © 2026 by Hao Peng. Published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc., with permission.

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