Computation of stereo disparity for space materials

One of the challenges facing computer vision systems used in space is the presence of specular surfaces. Such surfaces lead to several adverse effects such as the creation of reflected "virtual" images of objects due to specular reflections. These effects may lead to incorrect measurements and loss of data in the case of sensor saturation or inadequate intensity of the returned laser beams in the case of an active illuminant. In addition, the instruments inside space structures such as satellites may be extremely sensitive to active illuminants such as laser beams or radar signals, and thus passive vision systems which rely on either natural or low-power projection systems are preferred over active sensing technologies. Here we consider the task of recovering the local surface structure of highly specular surfaces such as satellites using passive stereopsis without resulting to the introduction of additional light source.