Vantor’s space-to-space satellites provide <10 cm resolution tracking of LEO objects in blind spots inaccessible to ground sensors, supporting Space Force operations.
Vantor (formerly Maxar Intelligence) began delivering non-Earth imaging services to U.S. Space Force’s Joint Commercial Operations cell in October 2025, tracking LEO satellites and debris in surveillance gaps. The company’s constellation captures <10 cm resolution images from several hundred kilometers distance, verifying spacecraft deployment, monitoring maneuvers, and assessing collision risks. NOAA’s 2022 license modification enabled commercial space-to-space imaging, complementing ground sensor networks during ocean and polar passes where Earth observation demand is minimal.
The Curious Evolution of Non-Earth Imaging Capabilities
NOAA’s December 2022 remote sensing license amendment authorized Vantor (then Maxar Intelligence) to repoint high-resolution electro-optical satellites—originally designed for 30-cm GSD Earth imaging—toward orbital targets, creating the first large-scale commercial space surveillance constellation. The modification followed years of policy debate balancing national security interests, export control concerns, and commercial innovation, with restrictions on imaging non-U.S. government spacecraft without consent remaining in place. Vantor’s Legion constellation, comprising six WorldView satellites (WV-1 through WV-4, GeoEye-1, and upcoming Legion birds) in 450–770 km sun-synchronous orbits, provides on-demand tasking flexibility denied to dedicated Space Surveillance Network (SSN) sensors with fixed ground locations and limited coverage geometries.
What Happens During Space-to-Space Image Collection
Vantor’s satellites conduct non-Earth imaging during equatorial ocean crossings and polar region passes—30–40% of orbital time where terrestrial demand is negligible—maintaining Earth observation revenue streams while acquiring space object data. Attitude control systems repoint telescopes ±45° off-nadir to frame target satellites, with exposure times adjusted for relative velocities (up to 15 km/s for counter-orbiting objects) to prevent motion blur. The <10 cm resolution at hundreds of kilometers range resolves spacecraft bus structures, solar panel configurations, antenna deployment states, and thruster plume signatures—details impossible from ground-based optical telescopes limited by atmospheric seeing (~20–50 cm resolution) or radar systems providing only range-Doppler profiles without imagery.
Why It Matters for Space Domain Awareness
The Space Surveillance Network’s ground-based radar and optical sensors suffer coverage gaps over southern hemisphere oceans, equatorial regions during local noon/midnight, and high-inclination orbits where geometry prevents simultaneous multi-sensor tracking. Vantor’s LEO-based vantage provides persistent access to these “blind spots,” enabling continuous custody of maneuvering satellites whose unpredictable burns evade ground-based orbit determination predictions. Space Force’s Joint Commercial Operations cell integrates Vantor data into Unified Data Library feeds supporting 18th Space Defense Squadron’s catalog maintenance, SpaceTrack.org conjunctions, and SSA Sharing Program partners requiring sub-meter positional accuracy for collision avoidance maneuvers. The capability addresses urgent gaps identified after Russia’s 2021 ASAT test and 2022 COSMOS satellite maneuvers demonstrated inadequate tracking of non-cooperative resident space objects (RSOs).
Observational Challenges in Space-Based Surveillance
Imaging spacecraft at hundreds of kilometers requires solving non-trivial targeting problems: ephemeris uncertainties (±kilometers for uncatalogued objects), attitude estimation from sparse observations, and dynamic scheduling coordinating constellation tasking against thousands of priority targets. Phase angle optimization balances solar illumination (avoiding backlit targets or specular glare from solar panels) against geometric constraints limiting look angles, while atmospheric drag uncertainties in 400–600 km altitude regimes introduce ±10 km orbit prediction errors over 24-hour windows. Vantor employs machine learning classifiers trained on synthetic aperture models distinguishing spacecraft types (communications, reconnaissance, technology demonstrators) from characteristic signatures—solar array spans, bus dimensions, deployed appendages—enabling automated threat assessment without human analysts reviewing every frame.
Link to Commercial Space Traffic Management
NOAA’s Office of Space Commerce awarded Vantor a separate contract supporting TraCSS (Traffic Coordination System for Space) by providing deployment confirmation for newly launched satellites before telemetry downlinks establish operational contact. During the critical 6–72 hour post-separation window, launch providers rely on ground-based tracking networks with sparse coverage, creating collision risk when dozens of co-manifested payloads disperse from rideshare deployers without precise ephemerides. Vantor’s imagery confirms solar panel deployment, antenna articulation, and separation from kick stages—validating that satellites achieved intended configurations before operators maneuver into operational orbits. This addresses Space Policy Directive-3 mandates requiring orbital debris mitigation and improving space traffic coordination through data sharing with commercial operators.
What the Future Holds for Space-Based SSA
Expanding Vantor’s Legion constellation to 15+ satellites by 2027 will enable <1 hour revisit rates for priority targets, sufficient for tracking maneuvering satellites through multi-burn sequences. Planned infrared sensors on future Legion buses will detect thruster firings via thermal signatures, providing near-real-time maneuver detection complementing delayed ground-based orbit change identification requiring 2–3 passes to confirm burns. International partnerships may extend non-Earth imaging to allied nations through data-sharing agreements similar to commercial Earth observation arrangements, though export control restrictions on sub-10 cm imagery remain sensitive. Alternative architectures under development include dedicated SSA cubesat constellations (e.g., Orbital Insight’s Hawkeye) and hosted payloads on commercial communications satellites, collectively aiming for 10,000+ daily space object observations by decade’s end.
Why This Discovery Is So Exciting for National Security Space
Vantor’s commercial space surveillance model validates public-private partnerships reducing DoD sensor investment while providing flexibility to scale capacity on-demand through commercial procurement rather than decade-long acquisition programs. The dual-use approach monetizes underutilized satellite capacity during Earth observation downtime, creating sustainable business cases for SSA investments beyond government contracts alone. Success demonstrates that high-resolution commercial imaging technology—once restricted to national technical means—can transition to commercial services augmenting rather than competing with government capabilities, precedent applicable to other intelligence domains including signals intelligence and spectral imaging. As megaconstellations proliferate orbital populations to 100,000+ objects by 2030, commercial SSA services become essential supplements to overwhelmed government tracking networks maintaining custody amid exponentially growing catalogs.
Conclusion
Vantor’s delivery of space-to-space imagery to U.S. Space Force demonstrates commercial sector’s expanding role in space domain awareness, filling critical surveillance gaps through innovative reuse of Earth observation assets. As orbital congestion intensifies and adversary on-orbit activities grow more sophisticated, these capabilities provide essential situational awareness maintaining U.S. space superiority and protecting critical satellite infrastructure. Explore more about astronomy and space discoveries on our YouTube channel, So Join NSN Today.
