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AI-Powered CubeSat Development: A Partnership Between Australia ONI and Spire
Technology Category
- Analytics & Modeling - Machine Learning
- Networks & Connectivity - Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)
Applicable Industries
- Buildings
- Telecommunications
Applicable Functions
- Logistics & Transportation
- Product Research & Development
Use Cases
- Construction Management
- Predictive Maintenance
Services
- Data Science Services
The Challenge
The Australian Office of National Intelligence (ONI) was established in 2018 with the aim of ensuring Australia has an agile, integrated intelligence enterprise to meet evolving security challenges. As part of its commitment to innovation, ONI partnered with Spire to develop and deploy a CubeSat with advanced machine learning capabilities. The challenge was to efficiently understand and process the large influx of data sent to Earth from space. Traditional methods of data processing were proving to be inefficient and resource-intensive, burdening ground stations and other infrastructure. The goal was to develop a system that could autonomously prioritize downloads, direct sensors, and provide actionable insights.
About The Customer
The customer in this case is the Australian Office of National Intelligence (ONI). Established in 2018, ONI's role is to ensure Australia has an agile, integrated intelligence enterprise to meet the country's evolving security challenges. ONI is committed to innovation and equipping the National Intelligence Community's talent with the best technologies. As part of this commitment, ONI partnered with Spire to develop and deploy their first experimental satellite with machine learning capabilities, the NICSAT Satellite Djara. The satellite was named as a tribute to the Ngunnawal indigenous Australian people who inhabit the Ngunnawal nation in which the Australian capital Canberra is located.
The Solution
The solution was the development of the NICSAT Satellite Djara, a CubeSat with advanced machine learning capabilities. The satellite was designed to conduct experiments with systems that enable the on-orbit collection and analysis of data, including commercially available sensors and technologies such as Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) and Machine Learning systems on a chip. The Spire and ONI solution collects and processes data on orbit and then leverages Spire’s cloud infrastructure to downlink, further process, and analyze the data. Spire contributed satellite operations and space systems engineering expertise, designing, developing, and manufacturing a 3U satellite and payload. The satellite was supported by a global ground network of 29 stations and a cloud-based storage and computing infrastructure for data processing and delivery.
Operational Impact
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