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It describes this as the “industry’s first autonomous space traffic coordination (STC) framework”, and it’s aimed at both commercial and government markets. Basically, it’s a way for operators to negotiate and coordinate the manoeuvring of satellites in response to the need for collision avoidance.
The U.S. company – which is based in Boulder, Colorado – described the seed extension round as oversubscribed, with investors comprising the VC firms Space Capital and EVE Atlas. The funding will see the Kayhan open an office in Washington, DC and increase its team of 20 employees to more than 30, adding executives and specialists in key roles ranging from business development to engineering and marketing.
Pathfinder
According to Kayhan, Pathfinder 3.0 includes new features related to risk assessment and optimised collision avoidance manoeuvre planning.
There is also the ability “to autonomously pre-coordinate manoeuvre responsibility and event mitigation status at the machine-to-machine level”, which incorporates the Space Safety Coalition (SSC) Best Practices for the Sustainability of Space Operations. It’s a software-as-a-service (SaaS) application that owner-operators deploy and automate for day-to-day satellite operations
A Pathfinder 3.0 beta release is expected to be available this autumn, with its new space traffic auto-coordination features available to all operators free of charge in its Pathfinder Essentials tier.
Autonomous
“This significant investment round with Space Capital and EVE Atlas marks a major milestone for Kayhan Space and the overall space industry, as we accelerate delivery of the first-ever autonomous space traffic coordination framework in Pathfinder 3.0,” said Siamak Hesar, Kayhan Space CEO and Co-Founder.
“Pathfinder 3.0 is a gamechanger for space traffic management, as it provides a structured protocol for operators to coordinate maneuver responsibility at the machine level, and then automate maneuverability and collision avoidance at scale using an established rules-based framework.”
The investors Space Capital highlighted the importance of satellite operators sharing data and coordinating actions in space:
“Space-based technologies are critical to our economy and national security and the ability for satellite operators to effectively share data, coordinate actions, and avoid a broad range of operational threats on orbit is game changing,” noted Chad Anderson, Founder and Managing Partner, Space Capital.
“Kayhan picks up where existing solutions leave off; their software solution provides unprecedented capability for satellite owner-operators and we are thrilled to support them in this journey.”
See also: Axiom Space raises $350m Series-C towards commercial space station
