SAT

WATCH

EXPLORING THE ORBITS

TRACKING, PREDICTING, AND MITIGATING ORBITAL THREATS

​

TEAM:

USSEIM

UPRIYA

el

S

H

inki

PROBLEM

STATEMENT

Sources:

image_1: https://www.bigstorynetwork.com/content/blinded-by-the-light-nasa-says-96-of-space-telescope-images-at-risk

Image_2:https://www.reuters.com/science/nasa-study-shows-how-satellite-light-pollution-hinders-space-telescopes-2025-12-03/

Image_3: https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/satellites-and-space-debris-are-polluting-our-night-skies/

Image_4: https://www.stevens.edu/news/space-debris-endangers-future-space-missions-but-theres-a-way-to-clean-it-up

​

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. Trends and current state of satellite populations in the atmosphere?

​

2. How fast is orbital debris growing and what does that mean for future satellite safety and space sustainability & light pollution and astronomy?

​

3. Who is responsible:

governments, space agencies, or private companies?

DATA CLEANING & TRANSFORMATION

Datasets:

Source 1: Kaggle dataset Link to Dataset

Source 2:

• API 1 - Celestrak - Data is updating every 2 hours
• API 2 - Spacetrack - Need to provide credentials to get the data

Dataset Cleaning and Merging:

• Handling duplicate and nulls
• Standardizing Column names and their datatypes
• Standardizing data in Column, selecting required columns
• Merging the Datasets

​

Link to Demo

ANALYSIS & RECOMMENDATIONS

Analysis Takeaway:

• Satellite growth accelerated strongly from 2015–2023, with a big boom after 2019.

• LEO is the most crowded orbit with commercial communication satellites.

• SpaceX/Starlink dominates by 60% the active-satellite landscape controlling the orbit.

• The trend is still rising, and more satellites will become debris if they are not removed properly.

​

SATWATCH recommendations for Stakeholder:

• Tighten launch rules for crowded orbits .

• Restrict Satellite orbits above observatories to reduce light pollution.

• Push for global regulation and shared debris standards.

​

HAPPY TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS

GITHUB REPO LINK

​

MEDIUM ARTICLE LINK

THANK YOU

TEAM: SUPRIYA AND HUSSEIM

“Satellite expansion is no longer just a technological success story; it is becoming a governance problem that requires global regulation, cleaner design, and active debris management.”

CHALLENGES

• Dataset selection was difficult because the needed information was spread across multiple sources, so no single dataset gave a full picture.

• Data cleaning took time, especially because values were inconsistent, spelling varied, and some fields needed standardization.

• Key information was fragmented across different datasets, which made merging and comparing data more complex.

• API access was limited to 2 hours, which restricted exploration, extraction, and validation of the data.

• The topic is highly technical, and many satellite-related terms were not well documented, especially column definitions and metadata.

​