Overview
This dataset contains observations along the expected track of the COSMOS-1408 satellite on Nov. 16, 2021. Objects are observed which have low relative angular velocity with respect to the expected pre-breakup track, possibly having originated from the COSMOS-1408 breakup event.
ASTRIANet
The ASTRIANet robotic telescope network collects raw optical imagery, unfiltered and uncorrected, stored in Flexible Image Transport System (FITS) standard format to provide both contiguous single-exposure data and associated metadata. ASTRIANet systems operate in rate-tracking mode following publicly available predicted two-line elements (TLEs) provided through Space Track and/or CelesTrack. Note that this ASTRIANet data is completely unprocessed, and the RA_OBJ/DEC_OBJ coordinates provided in the FITS headers are predicted propagations from available TLEs used for telescope pointing, and should not be confused with detections.
This dataset contains observations collected by both the ASTRIANet02 CCD telescope based in the New Mexico Skies Observatory, USA (NMS) and the ASTRIANet03 CMOS telescope based in El Sauce Observatory, Chile (ELS). Both systems operate at 300ms exposure for this dataset. The ASTRIANet02/NMS system provides ~1.76deg field-of-view and the ASTRIANet03/ELS system provides ~0.25deg field-of-view.
ASTRIANet02 at the New Mexico Skies Observatory, USA is a shared resource with the Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics in Moscow, Russia.
Data
The curated set of data included in this submission is as follows:
- FULLPASS_NMS_20211116_13552_cosmos_1408.tar.gz: A packaged collection of optical data for the COSMOS-1408 satellite for the entire pass collected on Nov. 16, 2021 by the ASTRIANet02 telescope. This compressed archive contains 86 FITS files for an ~400s contiguous observation. The telescope tracks an older pre-breakup TLE. Several spot-like features appearing across the frames are not streaked, indicating a low relative angular velocity with respect to the expected track, and thus these features may have been generated by the COSMOS-1408 breakup. The middle frames of this pass suffer from strong lunar illumination and other artifacts.
- VISUAL_FIRST12_NMS_20211116_13552_cosmos_1408.gif: An video visual of the first 12 frames of the ASTRIANet02 data, before onset of strong lunar illumination, showing several bright features.
- FULLPASS_ELS_20211116_13552_cosmos_1408.tar.gz: A packaged collection of optical data for the COSMOS-1408 satellite for the entire pass collected on Nov. 16, 2021 by the ASTRIANet03 telescope. This compressed archive contains 43 FITS files for an ~150s contiguous observation. The telescope tracks an older pre-breakup TLE.
- SELECTED_ELS_20211116_13552_cosmos_1408.tar.gz: A packaged collection of optical data for the COSMOS-1408 satellite for a selected sample of the pass collected on Nov. 16, 2021 by the the ASTRIANet03 telescope. This compressed archive contains 10 FITS files for an ~30s contiguous observation, selected to show a single bright object which has a very low relative angular velocity with respect to the expected pre-breakup TLE.
- ELS_20211116080905629_13552.fit: A selected single frame from the COSMOS-1480 observation from Nov. 16, 2021 by the the ASTRIANet03 telescope. This frame is selected to show several bright objects which only occur on this single frame. The telescope tracks a pre-breakup TLE, and the lack of streaking on these features over the exposure suggest a low relative angular velocity with respect to the expected track, and thus these features may have been generated by the COSMOS-1408 breakup.
- VISUAL_SELECTED_ELS_20211116_13552_cosmos_1408.mp4: An video visual of the selected ASTRIANet03 data showing a single bright object over several frames.
- VISUAL_ELS_20211116080905629_13552.jpg: A still visual of the ASTRAINet03 data showing several bright objects.
Documentation
Documentation on the sensor technical specifications and tracking information used to produce the dataset is included as follows:
- Questionnaire_sensor_NMSkies.docx: Technical specifications for the ASTRIANet02/NMS telescope used in collecting this dataset, including sensor details and other station information.
- Questionnaire_sensor_Chile_ElSauce.docx: Technical specifications for the ASTRIANet03/ELS telescope used in collecting this dataset, including sensor details and other station information.
Usage
These datasets can be reused by policymakers, by industry, by researchers and by the public interested in compliance with international regulations for ASOs.
(2021-11-16)