Diffraqtion, a Boston-based startup, is preparing to test a "quantum camera" aboard an orbital telescope within the next one to two months. This new technology aims to provide better, cheaper, and faster satellite photos. If successful, it could significantly reduce the cost of missile defense systems and extend advanced spy-satellite capabilities to smaller NATO allies and partners.
The company, funded in part by NASA and DARPA, is developing a novel method for generating images from photons. Traditional satellite cameras, despite their expense, utilize a process fundamentally similar to century-old photography, relying on light hitting a sensor. This traditional method is limited by diffraction and necessitates large, heavy components like glass lenses, making high-resolution imaging satellites costly to launch (averaging $50 million per satellite).
Diffraqtion's quantum camera is designed to be the size of a small suitcase, potentially allowing for launches costing around half a million dollars. This reduced cost could be vital for initiatives such as the White House's Golden Dome effort, which seeks to counter highly maneuverable hypersonic missiles by making space-based interceptor imaging systems more affordable and efficient.
Johannes Galatsanos, Diffraqtion's co-founder and CEO, noted that the technology could enable greater area coverage and simultaneous monitoring of multiple targets. The method, developed by co-founder and Chief Science Officer Saikat Guha, reverses the traditional imaging process. Instead of observing photons directly, it uses AI to model the optical field. The light is transformed, and its information is retained throughout its passage through the camera before the outcome of this processing is observed.
Galatsanos anticipates that a widespread constellation of these quantum camera satellites will not be feasible before 2030. However, the upcoming test could fundamentally alter space satellite imaging if the hypothesis proves viable.