Space based sensor management strategies based on informational uncertainty pursuit-evasion games

In this paper, a pursuit-evasion (PE) orbital game approach for space situational awareness (SSA) is presented to deal with imperfect measurements and information with uncertainties. The objective function includes the distance to be minimized by pursuers (observers/sensors) and maximized by evaders (space objects being tracked). The proposed PE approach provides a method to solve the realistic SSA problem with imperfect state information, where the evader will exploit the sensing and tracking model to confuse their opponents by corrupting their tracking estimates, while the pursuer wants to decrease the tracking uncertainties. A numerical simulation scenario with one space based space surveillance (SBSS) satellite as a pursuer and one geosynchronous (GEO) satellite as an evader is simulated to demonstrate the PE orbital game approach. Both SBSS and GEO apply the continuous low-thrust such as the Ion thrust in maneuvers. An add-on module is developed for the NORAD SGP4/SDP4 to propagate the satellites with maneuvers. Worst case maneuvering strategies for SBSS satellites are obtained from the Nash equilibrium of the PE game.