(Yicai) Nov. 28 -- A Chinese Academy of Sciences-backed company plans to launch a space-sensing constellation to safeguard space stations, spacecraft and satellites so as to address the safety issues posed by Earth’s increasingly congested orbit amid the rapid growth of global commercial space activity.

The Star Eye constellation will consist of 156 satellites designed to create a rapid-response, near-Earth monitoring network with global coverage, Geovis Insighter Technology said on Nov. 26. The system will track the trajectories of in-orbit spacecrafts and space debris in real time, issue collision warnings and assist with space traffic management.

These satellites are expected to be launched one after another starting from the first half of next year, to gradually form a full network, Hefei-based Geovis said.

With the commercial aerospace sector booming, the number of satellites and debris in space has been rising sharply, creating an urgent need for clear traffic guidance services, Wu Yirong, a CAS academic and director of CAS’ Aerospace Information Research Institute, told Yicai.

The Star Eye will provide end-to-end data support for commercial satellite operators, governments and research institutions, from satellite launch and orbit to in-orbit operations to end-of-life disposal, so as to significantly enhance the reliability and success rate of space missions, Wu said.

The Star Eye could also offer data services to third parties such as insurance companies and research institutions in the future, Wu added.

The China National Space Administration released a three-year action plan to promote commercial aerospace the day before the Star Eye program was announced. The plan calls for tracking and analyzing space debris and building a dynamic debris database as well as supporting the issuance of early warnings, the handling of commercial spacecraft in-orbit collisions and emergency responses to unexpected incidents.

China’s commercial aerospace industry first hit CNY1 trillion (USD141.3 billion) in 2020 and has maintained an average annual compound growth rate of over 20 percent since then. It reached CNY2.3 trillion (USD325 billion) last year and is expected to rise to CNY2.8 trillion this year, AskCI Research said.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Kim Taylor