Earthfence Deep Space Radar (GEO)
Thoth Technology
Fully digital, pulse-compression software-defined radar that tracks meter-scale objects in geostationary orbit, delivered as a data-as-a-service Space Domain Awareness capability.
Technical specifications
- Radar type
- Fully digital, pulse-compression, monostatic, software-defined, passive RF
- Tracking range
- Up to 50,000 km GEO and beyond into extended-GEO (XGEO)
- Ranging accuracy
- Better than 25 m
- Antenna network
- 46 m (Algonquin Radio Observatory, Canada); 30 m (Carnarvon, Australia); 32 m x2 (mainland Portugal and Azores)
- Tracking duration
- Continuous over hours to days for high-resolution orbit and range-rate determination
- Validation method
- Radar cross-section, spacecraft dimensions, antenna configuration
About
Earthfence GEO is a fully digital, pulse-compression, monostatic software-defined radar system able to track meter-scale objects in geostationary orbit out to 50,000 km and beyond in the extended-GEO region. It detects and ranges both known geostationary assets and unknown targets such as orbital debris, with ranging accuracy better than 25 m, sufficient for spacecraft navigation, space situational awareness, space traffic management, and collision avoidance support. The radar tracks targets continuously over periods of hours to days to build high-resolution orbits and range-rate solutions, with target detections validated against radar cross-section, spacecraft dimensions, and antenna configuration. Thoth markets Earthfence GEO as the world’s first commercial deep-space radar, delivering data from a growing global antenna network rather than as standalone hardware: a 46-meter antenna at the Algonquin Radio Observatory in Canada (Thoth’s home sensor), a 30-meter antenna in Carnarvon, Western Australia, and two 32-meter antennas in Portugal (mainland and the Azores), with further expansion planned to build a worldwide GEO radar ranging capability for Space Domain Awareness customers.
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.