Collaboration in Space for International Global Maritime Awareness
Wednesday June 23rd, 2010, 1500hrs–1530hrs
Chaired by Janis Cocking Collaboration in Space for International Global Maritime Awareness (C-SIGMA) Mr. George Guy Thomas, United States Coast Guard, United States National Security Presidential Directive-41/Homeland Security Presidential Directive-13 establishes U.S. policy for enhancing our national security and protecting our interests in the maritime domain. Specifically, it directs that maritime domain awareness (MDA) efforts be undertaken: “… to develop an enhanced capability to identify threats to the maritime domain as early and as distant from our shores as possible by integrating intelligence, surveillance, observation, and navigation systems into a common operating picture accessible throughout the United States government.” One of the main ways to accomplish this may well be to build, in collaboration with our international partners, a common operational picture on a global scale by combining terrestrial maritime surveillance systems with commercial and civilian space systems having significant earth and ocean observation capabilities. This capability would be in addition to any classified undertaking either now underway or planned and would have the huge benefit of being able to be shared with all seafaring nations of the world. Many people believe this undertaking is impossible from both technical and fiscal view points. However, the real possibility of using civilian satellites for persistent oceanic surveillance has recently come much more sharply into focus, and was strengthened significantly by the successful completion of a wide-ranging test from the Mediterranean to the East Coast of the United States in the fall of 2006 that used synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites coupled with new high resolution electro-optic and infrared (EO/IR) imaging satellites. The experiment used terrestrial AIS to positively identify the detected vessels. Since that test the successful launch and initiation of operations of several satellites that contained (AIS) receivers have greatly increased the capability to identify vessels on the open seas from space and further made the point that the unclassified detection and tracking of vessels from space is a reality. Civilian earth observations satellites have been operating since the mid-1980s but it is only in the past few years that the earth observation from space industry has expanded very rapidly both in number and capability of the individual spacecraft. Even more capable systems are now being planned, however with only a very few exceptions, no one is planning to take advantage of these systems for the Global Maritime Awareness they could provided if operated collaboratively. Many of these systems have significant ocean surveillance capabilities, which—if bundled together and used intelligently—could provide the maritime nations of the world with a much better picture of who is sailing the seas and provide indications of what their intentions are. Earth Surveillance Satellites The numbers and capabilities of both EO/IR and SAR satellites with oceanic surveillance capabilities are projected to grow substantially in the all will be built and launched, but the interest is clearly there on a global scale.
One study reports that as of late 2006 there were 31 EO/IR imaging systems in orbit with an additional 27 planned. There were also four synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites in orbit with another nine planned. Indeed, it was reported at the Earth Observation Business Network 2008 (held in May 2008) that, with the launch of Canada’s RadarSat 2 in December 2007, there are now seven SAR satellites in orbit. That number is set to increase dramatically as well. In addition, in the last 2 years almost a dozen different satellites have been launched with automatic identification system (AIS) receivers and an AIS receiver has been installed on the International Space Station. Some of these are now in direct support of at least two different SAR satellites. Indeed, it is the coupling of AIS via space with radar satellites, which can “see” in darkness and in light, as well as look through most cloud c
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I shared global reflection about maritime defence and security items: new concepts operational and technologies in naval systems.
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Admiral Francis de la Haye
Navy Adviser, Thales Group, France
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