This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Allen Schnibben's interest in space started when he was a child. "I picked up some books about the solar system when I was in elementary school.
In middle school, I got a telescope and I started observing the night sky as a hobby," said Schnibben, a computer scientist at Sandia National Laboratories. "My entire life, I've had an interest in space." Now, Schnibben collects data on satellites at Sandia's SOHBRIT facility, a 12-foot-wide (3.7-meter-wide) observatory. "If we don't keep track of them, then satellites could inadvertently come close to each other and potentially run into each other," Schnibben said.
"Satellites travel very fast. So, a collision at the speeds you expect satellites to be at could be a very catastrophic collision." The debris from a collision would present additional hazards to other satellites. According to NASA, more than 45,000 human-made objects were orbiting Earth as of 2024.
The number of satellites has increased significantly due to satellite constellations containing thousands of satellites instead of just a few. Satellites are used for communication, space imagery and university projects, among other purposes. "Space is becoming more readily accessible for different groups of people," Schnibben said.
"Groups like university students can build a small payload and have that payload launched and put up into space." SOHBRIT supports experiments and testing for Sandia's Space Mission Program. "It helps with things like predicting if satellites are going to collide with each other or if one satellite has moved. Essentially, it's keeping track of where all these satellites are, which is an important mission for the military and Sandia," Schnibben said.
SOHBRIT was built with commercial off-the-shelf products. "The intent was to put together a system that's relatively low-cost and build some automation software around it so that you don't need a person out there to operate the observatory," Schnibben said. "From my desk, I can set up a schedule that will execute during the night.
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