Using EISCAT radars for space debris detection

As ESA contract work, we are studying the feasibility of using the EISCAT incoherent scatter radars for space debris measurements. Tests at two EISCAT sites demonstrate that this indeed is possible, and can proceed in parallel with normal EISCAT ionospheric work, using a separate receiver back end to record the raw sample stream. Early analysis of the data suggests that, after coherent integration of the signal, particles of size 3 cm in the center of the antenna beam are detectable from 1000 km range.