By 
November 4th, 2022
Photo illustration by Thomas Gaulkin for the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ January 2022 issue (used with permission)
A new partnership is underway, one that calls for amateur astronomers and satellite watchers to create the largest optical space sensor network to accurately track thousands of human-made objects in Earth orbit.
Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak kick-started Privateer Space, the group now publicizing its partnership with Celestron, a leading telescope maker.
The collaborative venture allows Celestron telescope owners to participate in improving the collective understanding of where objects are located at any given time – in low Earth orbit and beyond.
Credit: Privateer Space
According to a Privateer Space statement, “by crowdsourcing the transparency and predictability of space, Privateer will be able to provide more accurate locations of objects in space and share those critical data through the Wayfinder platform, while Celestron users will be able to participate firsthand in keeping space safe and accessible for all humankind.”
Credit: Privateer Space
Space environmentalism
Moriba Jah, co-founder and chief scientist of Privateer, said that by combining Celestron telescopes with the recently launched Wayfinder 2.0, “anyone can easily become an active steward of the space environment.”
While many radars and telescopes can detect objects in space, Privateer adds that they are often not capable to track those objects long enough to precisely determine their orbits. That leaves much to guess.
Left to right: Moriba Jah, Chief Scientist; Steve Wozniak, President; Alex Fielding, CEO, Chairman.
Credit: Privateer Space
Celestron CEO, Corey Lee, said in a statement that the partnership with Privateer, will make “space environmentalism accessible to everyone” by participating in the largest optical space sensor network.
More details forthcoming as Privateer and Celestron develop and roll out this capability.
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Posted in Space News
