On a peak overlooking the village of Bezmiechowa in Podkarpacie, the Polish Space Agency Observation Center was opened to track crowds in Earth's orbit. Together with others like him, he aims to help ensure our space security.
The center opened on Thursday. The observatory is located at an altitude of 615 meters, on the peak above the village of Bezmiechowa. Construction took a year. Earlier, in 2022, the Polish Space Agency (POLSA) signed an agreement on this matter with the Rzeszów University of Technology. As the president of POLSA, prof., said in a conversation during the opening of the center. Grzegorz Wrochna, it is an element of the system that takes care of space safety.
– About 40,000 satellites are circling above our heads, millions of various debris from no longer working satellites and pieces of rockets. The crowd in orbit is already so large that there is a risk of collisions between satellites. We need to anticipate, observe and warn all this – explained Prof. Wrochna.
Digital eyes fixed on the sky
In a small wooden building with a retractable roof, an astronomical telescope is placed, which can track a selected object at a narrow angle and predict its flight path. Next to it there is a dome with an opening canopy and nine cameras monitoring the entire sky. They look for objects that may be dangerous. There is also an optical triangulation system connected to two similar ones, located near ToruÅ„ and in Greece. – Using observations from these three positions, we can determine the position of the satellite in orbit. If there is another object in the path of the calculated orbit, we warn its owners to either perform the maneuver or be prepared for losses – explains Dr. Eng. Mariusz KoÅ‚odziejczyk from the POLSA Space Security Department.
A place where “innovative equipment” is to be tested
The agency has facilities on five continents, but – as its president emphasized – the Observation Center in Bezmiechowa is particularly important. – Here we will be able to test innovative equipment – he explained. Space has already been prepared for additional devices. The systems installed in Bezmiechowa are fully robotic. Students of the Rzeszów University of Technology will also have access to the data. – We will conduct scientific research in cooperation with the Polish Space Agency, and we will also provide students with access to these devices remotely, because they are devices that transmit their observations – said the university's rector, prof. Piotr Koszelnik.
A place with a particularly “clear” sky
Bezmiechowa was chosen not by accident. There is no light pollution in the sky. – Many people in the world have never seen a clear sky because they live all their lives in the proverbial Los Angeles, where light pollution occurs 24 hours a day, every day of the year – added Prof. Koszelnik. The construction of the Observation Center in Bezmiechowa cost approximately PLN 10 million. It was financed by the Ministry of Development and Technology. – The cost of launching one satellite is often hundreds of millions, and in the case of large telecommunications satellites it is even billions. Therefore, it is worth investing in equipment that will allow us to protect devices in Earth orbit – said Prof. Wrochna.
Main photo source: PAP/Darek Delmanowicz