AFWERX Selects Slingshot Aerospace to Track and Identify Nefarious In-Space Activities

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 2, 2025--

Slingshot Aerospace, Inc., the leader in AI-powered solutions for satellite tracking, space traffic coordination, and space modeling and simulation, today announced it has been selected by AFWERX to support its Rapid Analysis of Photometric Tracks for space Object identification and behavior Recognition program. Under RAPTOR, Slingshot will use machine learning to track, analyze and report on behaviors of objects in low Earth orbit.

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Initially RAPTOR will be used to track and maintain custody of space objects of interest to U.S. Space Command, enabling timely reporting on events that could indicate an imminent satellite maneuver or mission change.

"Protecting our national interests demands the utmost focus on maintaining dominance and situational awareness in the space domain,” said Tim Solms, CEO of Slingshot Aerospace. “The Department of Defense must achieve comprehensive visibility and intelligence on covert and adversarial activities in space. RAPTOR delivers unparalleled awareness to safeguard critical assets, strengthen mission readiness, and uphold the security of our nation and its allies."

Vast amounts of photometric data from the Slingshot Global Sensor Network create digital signatures of space objects in LEO that Slingshot can identify, track, profile and analyze. This photometric fingerprinting provides defense and intelligence agencies with a new set of tools to unlock applications including:

Slingshot currently maintains a catalog of approximately 14,500 active spacecraft and debris with its globally deployed network of optical sensors, which generate more than 4.5 million photometric observations each night. When analyzed the resulting “light curves” create a unique digital fingerprint for each space object that can be fed into Slingshot’s Agatha AI model to identify changes like shifts in an object's orientation in space or its photometric signature.

“Establishing a comprehensive fingerprint database for all objects in orbit enables us to precisely identify an object’s nature and infer its potential mission objectives,” said Dr. Dylan Kesler, Vice President of Data Science, Slingshot Aerospace. “By applying machine learning across our network, we can identify unexpected behavior and use those insights to support our partners’ defense missions.”

RAPTOR program is part of a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II program administered by AFWERX, the innovation arm of the U.S. Air Force.

About Slingshot Aerospace

Slingshot Aerospace provides government and commercial partners around the world with AI-powered solutions for satellite tracking, space traffic coordination, and space modeling and simulation. The Slingshot Platform transforms disparate space data into a common operating picture of the space domain by leveraging advanced space object tracking, artificial intelligence, astrodynamics, and data fusion. Slingshot’s platform combines data from the Slingshot Global Sensor Network, the Slingshot Seradata satellite and launch database, satellite owner-operators, and other third-party space data providers to create a holistic and dynamic view of space for training, planning, and operations. This unified representation of space activities – past, present, and predicted – enhances operators' space situational awareness, improves operational efficiency, and reduces risk for space operators. Slingshot is driven by its mission to make space safe, sustainable, and secure. The company was launched in 2017 and has locations in California, Colorado, and the UK. Visit slingshot.space and follow Slingshot Aerospace on X and LinkedIn for the latest information. The Slingshot Aerospace media kit, including photos, can be found HERE.

About AFRL

The Air Force Research Laboratory is the primary scientific research and development center for the Department of the Air Force. AFRL plays an integral role in leading the discovery, development, and integration of affordable warfighting technologies for our air, space and cyberspace force. With a workforce of more than 12,500 across nine technology areas and 40 other operations across the globe, AFRL provides a diverse portfolio of science and technology ranging from fundamental to advanced research and technology development. For more information, visit afresearchlab.com.

About AFWERX

As the innovation arm of the DAF and a directorate within the Air Force Research Laboratory, AFWERX brings cutting-edge American ingenuity from small businesses and start-ups to address the most pressing challenges of the DAF. AFWERX employs approximately 370 military, civilian and contractor personnel at four hubs and sites executing an annual $1.4 billion budget. Since 2019, AFWERX has executed over 6,200 new contracts worth more than $4.7 billion to strengthen the U.S. defense industrial base and drive faster technology transition to operational capability. For more information, visit: afwerx.com.

The image shows simplified examples of how Slingshot identifies and characterizes low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites using unique brightness measurements to create digital ‘fingerprints.’ The true digital fingerprints created with RAPTOR are multi-dimensional and difficult to convey.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts on Thursday approved the design for the triumphal arch that President Donald Trump wants built at an entrance to the nation's capital, a key step in the project's process.

Commissioners, all appointed by Trump, acted despite overwhelming public opposition to the 250-foot arch, one of several projects that Trump is pursuing alongside a White House ballroom to leave his imprint on Washington.

“The building is beautiful,” the commission's chairman, Rodney Mims Cook Jr., said shortly before the vote on a design revised slightly from what was presented to the federal agency in April.

The arch would stand 250 feet tall (76 meters) from its base to a torch held aloft by a Lady Liberty-like figure on top of the structure. The statue would be flanked on top by two gilded eagles, but the four lions envisioned as guarding the base are now gone. The phrases “One Nation Under God” and “Liberty and Justice for All” would be inscribed in gold lettering atop either side of the monument.

A public observation deck on top would provide 360-degree views of the surroundings.

The commission’s vice chairman, architect James McCrery II, said in April that he preferred the arch without the figures on top, which would have reduced the arch's height by about 80 feet (24.4 meters). Critics of the project argue that the arch would dominate the skyline and disrupt views from the Lincoln Memorial to Arlington National Cemetery.

The arch would dwarf the Lincoln Memorial, which is 99 feet (30 meters) tall, and be close to half the height of the Washington Monument, an obelisk that is about 555 feet (169 meters) tall.

Commissioners were told at Thursday's meeting that Trump considered the suggestion to remove the statue “but elected not to pursue such an option.”

McCrery recommended doing away with the lions on the base and objected to plans for an underground tunnel for pedestrians to get to the arch, which would be built on a traffic circle. Both design elements have been removed.

Preliminary surveys and testing of the site began last week.

A group of veterans and a historian have sued the Trump administration in federal court to block construction on grounds that the arch would disrupt the sightline between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House at Arlington National Cemetery, among other reasons.

The Republican president and his interior secretary, Doug Burgum, have argued that Washington is the only major Western world capital without such an arch. Burgum's department includes the National Park Service, which manages the plot where Trump wants to put the arch.

The president has said some of his other projects, such as adding a blue coating to the interior of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, will beautify the city in time for July 4 celebrations of America’s 250th birthday.

Trump's rehab of the Reflecting Pool is also the subject of a court challenge brought by The Cultural Landscape Foundation, which said the administration’s moves to repaint the bottom of the Reflecting Pool blue without first undergoing relevant reviews ran afoul of federal preservation laws governing historic sites.

The nonprofit group argued in a lawsuit filed last week that the changes at the Reflecting Pool are part of Trump’s broader effort to push through dramatic renovations in Washington without proper reviews and undermine the tone of the area.

A hearing in the case was scheduled for later Thursday in federal court in Washington.

Flags placed by workers are pictured in the Memorial Circle, where President Donald Trump has proposed building an arch to commemorate the United States' 250th anniversary, Friday, May 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

The Memorial Circle, where President Donald Trump has proposed building an arch to commemorate the United States' 250th anniversary is seen, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)