Image courtesy SSC

Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) has announced that it will soon activate a new ground station in Western Australia, capable of generating highly sophisticated space situational awareness (SSA) data for its future customers and partners.

The station is to be located at the Western Australia Space Centre, 400 kilometres north-east of Perth.

The new station is a part of SSC’s program to contribute to both safer and more sustainable use of near-Earth space as number of objects keeps increasing at a rapid pace.

“We are working diligently to deliver data and develop services to help satellite owners operate their assets as safely and securely as possible,” said Jacob Ask, SSC Program Manager.

“The current number of satellites in space will increase considerably in the future. As the near-Earth space becomes more and more crowded, the need for more precise data will keep growing.”

Development of the station began in mid-2020. It features telescopes which will be remotely controlled from the SSC head office in Solna in Stockholm, Sweden.

The telescopes and cameras will be used for detecting and tracking satellites and space debris, collecting valuable information for the management of space traffic in orbit.

“After the installation we will engage heavily in joint observation campaigns with our partners, data fusion, data sharing activities and more. We look forward to contribute to a safer environment in space for the benefit of the development of life on Earth,” said Ask.

The new station is expected to be in operation by mid-2022.

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