This local professor is using AI to help track the growing threat of 'space debris'

Dr. George Landon, head of computer science and cyber operations at Cedarville University, is collaborating with the U.S. Air Force Academy to enhance the identification of space debris using artificial intelligence and ground-based telescopes. The increasing amount of satellites and rocket fragments in Earth’s orbit makes this task challenging, as debris often appears as a single pixel moving at high speed. Landon presented his research at the 2025 AMOS space surveillance conference to organizations including NASA, Amazon, and SpaceX, highlighting the need for constant trial and error in applying AI to real-world data. He is now incorporating these practical challenges into his teaching, aiming to foster AI literacy among students and encourage a balanced understanding of the technology’s capabilities and limitations. Students Doxa Kudari and Elijah Lewis are assisting in developing AI to track rocket body movements, potentially aiding future debris removal efforts and collision prevention.

(Source：WTTE)