Strategies and Methods for Automatic Space-Debris Optical Survey Observations and Processing of the Images

Observatorio Astronómico de Mallorca, conducting the La Sagra Sky Survey and DEIMOS Elecnor S.L.U. have been involved in a co-founded project devoted to testing the operational feasibility of enhanced optical survey only strategies minimizing the tracking needs to create and maintain a catalogue of high altitude objects. It was also aimed to minimize the routinely human efforts during the nightly control of the telescopes and particularly to avoid manual steps when processing of the images for delivering the astrometric measurements of the detected objects. This paper is focused on this second topic, to show some of the strategies and the robotic capabilities of the La Sagra telescopes and the processing tools for automatically detecting and delivering accurate measurements. Traditionally, these steps require humans in the loop, carrying out repeated tasks, making all the process non-practical and expensive when the aim is not an experimental campaign but to produce a regular service.