Mission data processing
Explore local processing of imagery and sensor observations before transmitting selected results to Earth.
Future concept / Orbital computing
Space data centers
Extending our resource-intelligence vision into orbital computing. The concept would process survey data closer to spacecraft, support mission decisions, and send selected results to Earth. This is a future development direction, not an operating data center service.
Process
Prioritize
Transmit
FUTURE CONCEPT / ORBITAL COMPUTINGFuture infrastructure direction
Overview / Orbital computing
Compute where the data begins
A future orbital computing concept for processing survey data near its source, with power, thermal control, radiation resilience, and communications designed together.
Resource intelligence
Study how shared computing could support sensor fusion, target ranking, and validation planning.
Distributed operations
Evaluate a computing layer that could serve multiple survey spacecraft without replacing their onboard safety controls.
Mission role / Survey intelligence
Turn observations into useful decisions
A survey fleet generates imagery, terrain measurements, and material-signature observations. An orbital processing node could combine selected data and return priorities to mission teams, while each spacecraft retains its own time-critical control.
- Align observations from multiple instruments
- Flag candidate zones for closer inspection
- Preserve evidence, confidence, and data provenance
Engineering / Before deployment
Design for the limits of space
Computing in orbit requires a coupled design for electrical power, radiators that reject heat in vacuum, radiation resilience, and reliable data links. Launch, servicing, and end-of-life plans also matter. Any cost or environmental advantage must be demonstrated, not assumed.
- Power and thermal budgets matched to the workload
- Fault-tolerant computing, storage, and recovery
- Communications capacity and ground-system integration
- Simulation and hardware testing before a mission demonstration
Next / Orbital computing
Plan orbital computing
Discuss mission workloads, data interfaces, and test requirements for a scoped orbital computing research program.