MAUI, Hawaii, April 13, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Privateer Space, the data and intelligence platform powering the future of space sustainability, today announced Dr. Moriba Jah, the company’s co-founder and chief scientist, has been awarded a grant from the National Geographic Society and will become a National Geographic Explorer. This grant will go to Privateer’s launch of Glint Evader. Glint Evader will collect satellite data to develop software that predicts and helps astronomers anticipate when sunlight reflecting off of satellites may interfere with their observations.
Glints occur when the observer is in darkness and the satellite is illuminated by the sun, and a satellite surface is closely aligned with the Sun-satellite-observer bi-sector. This spike in brightness makes it increasingly difficult to see dim items in space. Glint Evader will model responses to photons to predict glints, and provide these predictions to researchers to avoid collecting light from specific locations at specific times.
“The more we launch into space, the more the research community struggles to collect observations of the sky, limiting our ability to push our scientific frontiers and better understand the universe,” said Moriba Jah. “I’m honored to receive this grant and become a National Geographic Explorer to continue to uncover the future of space technology and to advance scientific research with Glint Evader.”
Glint Evader will bring data from satellite structures, material properties, and orientations to Privateer’s modeling and processing technology. Through Privateer’s engineering resources, the data will be distributed in an online application that predicts glints and helps review observations to assess probability that a light burst is a glint or astronomical phenomenon.
“One of the biggest problems facing satellites and astronomical observations is glints,” said Alex Fielding, co-founder and CEO of Privateer. “This grant will help to better predict and overcome this challenge, empowering space sustainability research and helping to make space safe and accessible for all.”
“We’re thrilled to support Dr. Moriba Jah and welcome him into the National Geographic Explorer community. His approach to space exploration is curious, innovative and sustainable, which exemplifies the Explorer mindset. His work is critical to better understanding how we can illuminate and protect the wonder of our planet and beyond,” said Ian Miller, Chief Innovation and Science Officer at National Geographic Society.
About Privateer
Privateer powers the applications that build the new space economy. By mapping satellites and debris in Earth orbit with unprecedented accuracy and transparency, Privateer is making space predictable and safe, paving the way for the rapid growth of space exploration and commerce. Privateer is the latest venture founded by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and Ripcord CEO Alex Fielding along with Dr. Moriba Jah. Proudly headquartered in Maui, Privateer hopes to honor the native Hawaiian traditions of environmental stewardship by extending them to humanity’s next frontier. To learn more, please visit https://mission.privateer.com.
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