Military personnel from the Aerospace Operations Command’s Space Operations Center took part in the exercise.
Air Force Agency – COMAE, by Captain Dilson
From February 5 to 16, Global Sentinel 2024 took place at Vandenberg Space Force Base, located in Lompoc, California, one of the bases of the recently created United States Space Force. The exercise included the participation of military personnel from the Space Operations Center (COPE) of the Aerospace Operations Command (COMAE).
Organized by the United States Space Command (USSPACECOM), the main objective of the activity was to promote collaboration between nations in the area of Space Situational Awareness (SSA).
In this edition, 25 countries took part: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Ukraine and the United States.
Objects in orbit around the earth can be natural or artificial. They are monitored by a variety of sensors, including telescopes, radars, lasers and passive Radio Frequency. Given that the number of sensors available to track these objects is limited, cooperation between countries to exchange information is key to increasing global Space Situational Awareness.
Thus, the main outcome of the Exercise is the improvement of each country’s TTPs (Tactics, Techniques and Procedures), as well as the development of command and control protocols to facilitate the exchange of information on orbital data between the participating countries.
In addition, the exercise included simulations of space object observation, data management and coordination of priorities in collaboration with other nations.
Lieutenant Colonel Rafael de Almeida Duque was the head of the Brazilian Space Operations Center (BRA SpOC) during the exercise. “No country can monitor all the world’s satellites simultaneously. This partnership allows us to determine the orbits of space objects, contribute to reducing the possibility of collisions in space on a global scale, defend space systems and evolve with our partners to meet the new challenges that this strategic area presents us with,” he said.
Brazil thus stands out as part of an international community concerned with maintaining Situational Awareness of the Space Domain in order to protect the integrity of its space assets.
Photos: COMAE *** Translated by DEFCONPress FYI Team ***