TL;DR: The University of Birmingham and Alan Turing Institute have secured £610,000 to develop Project Aemelia, an AI-powered satellite radar system that will monitor threats to UK space infrastructure in real-time.

The Challenge

With over 15,000 satellites and more than 1 million pieces of debris larger than a centimetre now orbiting Earth, space is becoming increasingly congested. Traditional ground-based telescopes suffer from low resolution, poor viewing angles, and atmospheric interference when monitoring orbital objects.

The stakes are significant: loss of access to critical satellites for just one week could cost the UK up to £7 billion, according to Dr Victoria Nockles, Principal Data Scientist and Head of the Defence AI Research Centre at the Turing.

Project Aemelia

Revealed at the Space Comm Expo in Glasgow, Project Aemelia pioneers space-to-space imaging using a novel radar sensor leveraging Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR) technology. This generates high-fidelity 3D images of satellites, rockets, and debris orbiting at incredible speeds of 8km per second.

Researchers at the Turing will deploy advanced AI algorithms to produce 3D digital reconstructions, evaluate object movement, and make real-time decisions using an autonomous system of AI agents. The team is also exploring deployment of the AI system directly onto satellite hardware, reducing power requirements to that of a lightbulb.

Strategic Implications

Professor Marina Gashinova from the University of Birmingham described this as positioning the UK “at the confluence of three transformative technological frontiers: Space, AI, and Autonomy.”

The project forms part of the UK Space Agency’s National Space Innovation Programme, bolstering the Turing’s growing portfolio of Defence and National Security work.

Looking Forward

For UK businesses operating in space-adjacent sectors, Project Aemelia demonstrates how AI can protect critical infrastructure whilst extending satellite lifespans and reducing space debris. This has implications for communications, navigation, and earth observation services that underpin modern commerce.