DARPA developing zoom lens to spot distant space objects more clearly: Imaging of Earth from satellites in space has vastly improved in recent years. But the opposite challenge-using Earth-based systems to find, track and provide detailed characterization of satellites and other objects in high orbits-has frustrated engineers even as the need for space domain awareness has grown.
State-of-the-art imagery of objects in low Earth orbit (LEO), up to 2,000 km (1,200 miles) high, can achieve resolution of 1 pixel for every 10 cm today, providing relatively crisp details. But image resolution for objects in geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO), a favorite parking place for space assets roughly 36,000 km (22,000 miles) high, drops to just 1 pixel for every 2 meters, meaning many GEO satellites appear as little more than fuzzy blobs when viewed from Earth.
Enabling LEO-quality images of objects in GEO would greatly enhance the nation's ability to keep an eye on the military, civilian and commercial satellites on which society has come to depend, and to coordinate ground-based efforts to make repairs or correct malfunctions when they occur
