CosmosDSR -- a methodology for automated detection and tracking of orbital debris using the Unscented Kalman Filter

The Kessler syndrome refers to the escalating space debris from frequent space activities, threatening future space exploration. Addressing this issue is vital. Several AI models, including Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN), Kernel Principal Component Analysis (KPCA), and Model-Agnostic Meta-Learning (MAML), have been assessed with various data types. Earlier studies highlighted the combination of the YOLO object detector and a linear Kalman filter for object detection and tracking. Building on this, our project introduces CosmosDSR, a novel methodology combining YOLOv3 with an Unscented Kalman Filter for tracking satellites in sequential images, compared to a linear Kalman filter. Using the SPARK dataset from the University of Luxembourg for training and testing, the YOLOv3 precisely detected and classified all satellite categories (mAP=97.18%, F1=0.95) with few errors (TP=4163, FP=209, FN=237). Both CosmosDSR and the LKF tracked satellites accurately (UKF: MSE=2.83/RMSE=1.66, LKF: MSE=2.84/RMSE=1.66). Despite concerns of class imbalance and the absence of real images, the model shows promise. Future work should address these limitations, increase tracking sample size, and improve metrics. This research suggests the algorithm's potential in detecting and tracking satellites, paving the way for solutions to the Kessler syndrome.