Simultaneous Sky Mapping and Satellite Tracking

The above video shows the raw outputs from the event-based camera (top left) as the telescope is moved to keep a satellite (a Cz4 rocket body) in the field of view. The location of the satellite is shown using a red circle in both the raw data, and in the generated star map. This star map is generated continuously from the stars as they pass through the field of view (which is shown using a red square). By using these star locations, the motion of the telescope can be inferred and is shown in the two inset graphs. The algorithm is robust to both the movement of the object being tracked and the movement of the telescope itself, as demonstrated by the significant change in the x-position of the object visible in the top graph.

The data was recorded using a prototype backside illuminated DAVIS camera supplied by Professor Tobi Delbrück and recorded during a field trial conducted by the DST Group in South Australia during March 2018.