In the framework of the European Space Agency's (ESA) Space Situational Awareness (SSA) programme, researchers from the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft in Germany have developed a new space surveillance system to keep abreast of the increasing quantities of space debris floating around the orbital highway.

This 'space debris', which increases every year, opposes serious threats to all the satellites and other spacecraft that risk being damaged or even destroyed if they come into contact with it. Therefore, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft in Germany are playing a key role in this project by supplying the receiver for part of the radar system.

Using an electronically steerable, inertia-free antenna that can be positioned very quickly, the surveillance system can observe a large number of objects simultaneously, detecting their position to a high degree of accuracy and sensitivity. As there will be between 15,000 to 20,000 objects on the radar for at least 10 seconds every day, this will certainly come in handy.

There are currently an estimated 20,000 objects with a minimum diameter of 10 centimetres circling Earth, including 15,000 in the low Earth orbit at an altitude of between 200 and 2,000 kilometres. And these objects are by no means snail-paced; reaching speeds of up to 28,000 km per hour, meaning even the smallest particles measuring a centimetre or less in diameter can cause serious damage to or even destroy any unlucky satellite in its path. Bearing in mind this issue, the ESA decided to tackle the problem head on by launching its SSA programme, which began in 2009 and runs until the end of 2011.

The Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHR in Wachtberg will develop the demonstrator in collaboration with Spanish company Indra Espacio, which will develop the transmitter array.