MetaSensing Srl has officially launched the SAILS project – Spaceborne Autonomous Identification and Localization System, as part of the ASI (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana) ALCOR funding program, aimed at advancing space technology.. The company will build a multichannel, digital beamforming SIGINT (SIGnal INTelligence) payload. The project officially began on December 19, 2024, following MetaSensing’s participation in the ALCOR call. A second key meeting held on January 22, 2025, marked significant progress in the project’s development.
SAILS aims to develop and test an innovative autonomous identification and localization system aboard a 12U CubeSat.This cutting-edge technology will enable the satellite to detect, identify, and localize RF signals at X band transmitted from Earth, providing enhanced monitoring of the electromagnetic environment.
This project marks a significant milestone for MetaSensing, as it represents the company’s complemtary extensions of high bandwidth, multichannel technologies developed for Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) applications and then extended and adapted to passive geolocation domains. In fact, the SAILS project highlights the company’s strategic expansion into advanced digital beamformer SIGINT and ELINT payloads, which can be extended later on to cover the full radio frequency spectrum.
The SAILS project is structured into four operational phases:
- Phase A: Preliminary study and design
- Phase B: System development and testing
- Phase C: Construction and integration
- Phase D: Production and orbital launch
MetaSensing is leading the project in collaboration with NPC Space Mind, responsible for developing the CubeSat platform, and the Politecnico di Bari, in charge of the attitude control system.
The technologies being developed have the potential for broader applications, including space debris monitoring, collision prevention, and autonomous navigation, further demonstrating MetaSensing’s continuous advancement in radar technology and its expanding role in the space sector.
SAILS: MetaSensing S.r.l.; N.P.C.; New Production Concept S.r.l.; Polytechnic University of Bari