Machine Learning (ML) is an industry game changer with the potential to impact the way satellites are operated and automated, said speakers at the SATELLITE Show session, “How Machine Learning Offers to Revolutionize Satellite Operations.”
Hughes VP Rajeev Gopal said: “With AI and ML, there’s a great bit you can automate.” However, he noted current systems are only 80–90 percent accurate: “You can’t replace humans.”
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Lockheed Martin VP Maria Demaree said: “It took me 30 years to get to this panel. It’s finally coming to the point where we’re embracing it.” Lockheed is focusing ML research on image recognition and natural language processing. “We’re really not trying to turn over everything to robots — it’s about providing our analysts a way to be more accurate and more efficient.”
SCISYS Director Spencer Ziegler agreed: “In satellite operations, you’ll be using ML to support humans. It will let us work with more systems, more complex systems.”
On the data challenge, Demaree noted: “I do believe there is the right amount of data, but the question is can we get to it? How do we bring the data sets together in the cloud? That’s the challenge.” Ziegler added: “A lot of data is being generated, whether IoT or Earth Observation. But a lot of it is of no use to us.” VS
