The CogniSAT-6 satellite, which is operated by Dublin-based space technology firm Ubotica, uses AI to identify and detail terrestrial objects in real time for what its developers suggest is the first time. This reportedly occurred without delay as the satellite transmitted a downlink to its ground controllers.

Source: Ubotica

“This is a paradigm shift for Earth observation. The industry has long sought a model of live Earth intelligence, where insights are generated onboard satellite and instantly relayed to the ground. The CogniSAT-6 mission is the first to achieve Live Earth Intelligence, revolutionizing the capabilities and cost-efficiency of Earth observation,” explained Fintan Buckley, CEO of Ubotica.

Current Earth observation methods are described by Ubotica as slow, expensive and ineffective, typically transmitting images only as they pass over a downlink ground station, which can often take days to occur. Likewise, satellites tend to gather data without interpretation, thereby requiring time-consuming ground processing.

Yet, thanks to the advent of AI, satellites are becoming more and more intelligent and efficient, the researchers suggest, enabling a real-time network of satellites to relay data directly to Earth without delay.

As such, CogniSAT-6 can reportedly identify ships, their sizes and their direction — all in real-time. Further, the team suggests that the ship location data can be used in combination with Automatic Identification System (AIS) information to potentially identify suspicious vessels.

Beyond ship detection, the technology could also be used to identify oil spills or monitor ocean ecosystems.