Radio Telescopes Successfully Track Space Debris in Real Time
The LBMR project demonstrates a breakthrough method for monitoring dangerous fragments in geostationary orbit using transatlantic radar and U.K. radio telescopes.
Scientists have successfully demonstrated real-time tracking of space debris using radio telescopes, a breakthrough that could protect critical satellites in geostationary orbit previously difficult to monitor.
The Long Baseline Multistatic Radar (LBMR) project, funded by the UK Space Agency with foundational research support from NATO's Science and Technology Organization, bounced radar signals from a transmitter at MIT Lincoln Laboratory's Millstone Hill facility near Boston to receivers across the United Kingdom. The 76-meter Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank, the e-MERLIN radio telescope network, and the 30-meter Goonhilly Earth Station antenna all served as receivers.
The GEO Gap
Traditional ground-based radar systems lack the sensitivity to monitor geostationary orbit at altitudes of approximately 36,000 kilometers (22,500 miles). Optical telescopes can track objects in GEO but struggle to consistently detect fragments smaller than about 10 centimeters. The Intelsat 33e debris fragment tracked by the team measured roughly 66 centimeters across—large enough to cripple a satellite yet small enough to evade many existing detection systems.
Radio telescopes, typically used for deep-space astronomy, provide the necessary sensitivity to act as receivers for radar signals bouncing off these distant objects.
Real-Time Success
The researchers demonstrated real-time tracking capability at a live event at ESA's ECSAT facility in Harwell, Oxfordshire. An earlier February 2025 observation of an Intelsat 33e fragment was analyzed post-event, but the project has since achieved real-time processing of distance and velocity data using a single receiving antenna.
"That's the first time that's ever been done," said Simon Garrington, associate director of Jodrell Bank.
The collaboration includes the University of Birmingham, University of Manchester, Goonhilly Earth Station, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and CSIRO in Australia. Plans call for expanding to multiple telescopes for full 3D tracking.
From 'Crazy' to Confirmed
Marco Martorella, an electronic engineer at the University of Birmingham, recalled the project's origins: "This idea started about seven years ago. It sounded at that time like a crazy idea, because we had no synchronization... But we were crazy enough to continue."
The initial challenge involved synchronizing assets on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean. The successful demonstration proves that radio telescopes can overcome the sensitivity limitations of traditional ground-based radar for high-altitude orbits.
Successfully implementing 3D tracking via multiple radio telescopes would significantly improve the ability to predict and avoid collisions, protecting critical communications and weather satellites in geostationary orbit from fragments that remain invisible to most current monitoring systems.