NEW DELHI, May 1: A consortium comprising Bengaluru-based start-up Digantara and Australia’s Space Machines Company on Wednesday said it has won an 8.5 million Australian dollar grant to enhance capabilities to track space debris and provide ‘roadside assistance in space’.
Using the funding, Digantara’s optical sensor technology will be integrated with the Australian company’s orbital servicing vehicle to enhance the capability to monitor and track resident space objects in low earth orbit
The grant, funded by the Australian Space Agency’s International Space Investment India Projects programme, is aimed at bolstering space capabilities through partnerships of space sector companies from the two countries.
Related Posts:
The collaboration primarily focuses on enhancing Space Domain Awareness (SDA) capabilities and developing a robust in-orbit servicing ecosystem towards providing ‘Roadside Assistance in Space’, a Digantara statement said.
This integration of technologies is expected to transform the monitoring of Resident Space Objects (RSOs) in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), enhancing space traffic management and debris monitoring with its high sensitivity, superior tracking accuracy, and frequent revisit rates, the statement said.
“With the support of the Australian Space Agency, this partnership merges complementary technologies to turn our shared vision of a sustainable space ecosystem into reality,” Anirudh Sharma, CEO of Digantara said.
“This initiative not only redefines space operations but also highlights the collaborative spirit between India and Australia in advancing innovations in space,” he said.
“Through collaborations like this, we are not only leveraging the best technologies from both nations but also strengthening the bonds of friendship and cooperation between Australia and India in the space domain,” Rajat Kulshrestha, CEO of Space Machines Company.
The partnership between Digantara and Space Machines Company is considered a significant milestone in Australia–India mission Space-MAITRI (Mission for Australia-India’s Technology, Research, and Innovation initiative.
Digantara is a space situational awareness company building an end-to-end infrastructure to address the difficulties of space operations and situational awareness through its pioneering Space-Mission Assurance Platform, also known as Space-MAP. (PTI)
