At blistering speeds over Mach 10, hypersonic missiles can scream from rogue states to the U.S. mainland in under 60 minutes. But an impressive new AI satellite system aims to spot these threats coming in hot.
The U.S. Space Development Agency just tossed almost $1.6 million to California company EpiSci to develop software for tracking hypersonic missiles. It will empower a planned network of satellites monitoring for weapons hurtling five times the speed of sound!
See, companies like SpaceX are set to soon launch a massive missile-spotting satellite constellation for the Agency called the Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor. Hundreds of eyes in the sky detecting heat plumes and debris trails.
But all that raw data is useless without smart software to analyze possible hypersonic threats. Are those blurry dots on satellite cameras just benign space junk or a potential Mach 10 apocalypse missile? That’s where EpiSci’s AI algorithms swoop in!
By partnering with missile experts Raytheon, EpiSci aims to train its AI brain to expertly identify deadly blinding-fast weapons in orbit. No easy task when targets move blisteringly quick in complex environments light years from Earth!
But with enough simulated data, the AI can learn to rapidly classify that fiery dot careening past Asia as a likely Chinese hypersonic glider. Or determine some odd infrared signatures over Russia suggest an orbital weapons test gone awry.
See the power here? Ultra-fast pattern recognition and geopolitical context from an artificial brain. No waiting around for slow human analysis while a potential missile barrels towards U.S. carriers!
EpiSci promises its “Tactical AI” software will revolutionize global missile defense when operational by intelligently focusing satellite resources on the biggest threats. Forget playing catchup…this system PUTS earthly militaries on the offensive against all airborne Armageddon-rockets!
Well, at least in theory. No sign of actual targeting or takedown capabilities yet. But giving commanders a 60-minute minimum heads up on hypervelocity threats beats being caught sleeping as atoms ignite overhead!
