Space Data Network

Content Addressing & Pinning

Immutable data with cryptographic integrity

Data Input

Any SDS schema data

{ "OBJECT_NAME": "ISS", "EPOCH": "2025-01-24T12:00:00Z", ... }

Content Hash (CID)

SHA-256 hash of the content

bafybeigdyrzt5sfp7udm7hu76uh7y26nf3efuylqabf3oclgtqy55fbzdi

Distributed Storage

Pinned across network nodes

Tamper-Proof

Content hash changes if data is modified. Any alteration is immediately detectable.

Permanent References

CIDs never change. Reference specific data versions forever, even as new versions are published.

Deduplication

Same data = same hash. Network automatically deduplicates, saving storage and bandwidth.

Selective Pinning

Choose what to store locally. Pin critical data for availability, let other data flow through.

Data Marketplace

Monetize your space data with built-in commerce

SDN includes a commercial layer enabling data providers to sell access to premium data products. Encryption ensures only paying customers can access purchased content.

1. Publish Data

Provider uploads premium data product (high-precision ephemeris, analysis results, etc.)

2. Per-Customer Encryption

Data encrypted with each customer's public key using ECIES. Only key holder can decrypt.

3. Payment

Customer pays via credit card through integrated payment gateway. Automatic revenue distribution.

4. Access Granted

Customer receives encrypted data. Decrypts locally with their private key.

Data Products

High-precision ephemeris data
Proprietary conjunction analysis
Historical catalogs and archives
Real-time tracking feeds
Specialized sensor data

Plugin Marketplace

Analysis algorithms
Visualization tools
Format converters
Integration connectors
Custom propagators

Payment Options

Credit/debit cards (Stripe)
One-time purchases
Recurring subscriptions
Usage-based billing
Enterprise invoicing

The marketplace operates on top of the free, open network. Core SSA data exchange remains free and open. Commercial layer is opt-in for premium products.

Open Source Astrodynamics

Complete SSA processing pipeline included with every SDN client

Every SDN installation - whether the full server node or the lightweight JavaScript client - includes a complete open source astrodynamics baseline. No proprietary software licenses required.

Orbit Propagation

SGP4/SDP4 propagators for TLE data, plus numerical integration for high-precision ephemeris. Runs identically in Go and WebAssembly.

Observation Association

Correlate observations with cataloged objects. Match radar tracks, optical measurements, and RF detections to known satellites or identify new objects.

Orbit Determination

Batch least-squares and sequential filters for orbit determination. Differential correction to refine orbital elements from tracking data.

Conjunction Assessment

Screen for close approaches, compute collision probabilities, and generate Conjunction Data Messages (CDM). Built-in hard body radius screening and probability of collision calculation.

All astrodynamics functions are available in both the Go server and JavaScript SDK, enabling consistent processing from cloud infrastructure to web browsers.

Why Space Traffic Management Matters

The orbital environment is becoming dangerously congested

Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251 collision debris field visualization from NASA

Debris from Iridium 33 / Cosmos 2251 collision still in orbit (Feb 2024). Credit: NASA SVS

The Wake-Up Call: Iridium 33 & Cosmos 2251

On February 10, 2009, Iridium 33 (an active U.S. communications satellite) collided with Cosmos 2251 (a defunct Russian military satellite) at a relative velocity of 11.7 km/s (26,000 mph).

The collision occurred at an altitude of 790 km over northern Siberia, creating the largest accidental debris cloud in history.

2,000+

Trackable debris fragments created

790 km

Altitude of collision

11.7 km/s

Relative collision velocity

Neither operator had advance warning. Today, with proper data sharing infrastructure, this collision could have been avoided with a simple maneuver.

The Scale of the Problem Today

~50,000

Conjunction warnings per day

issued by the 18th Space Defense Squadron

~30,000

Tracked objects in orbit

as of 2026, increasing rapidly

~100

Collision avoidance maneuvers

performed weekly by active satellites

100,000+

Satellites planned by 2030

from mega-constellations alone

Projected Growth of Space Objects

100K 75K 50K 25K 0

3.3K

22K

2020

10K

27K

2023

15K

30K

2025

35K

45K

2028

58K

65K

2030

Active Satellites Total Tracked Objects Projected

Sources: ESA Space Debris Office, Space-Track.org, satellite operator filings. Projections based on approved constellation deployments.

Who Benefits from Open Infrastructure?

Space Agencies

Share conjunction warnings and tracking data globally. Coordinate collision avoidance across international boundaries without diplomatic overhead.

Satellite Operators

Publish orbital elements in real-time and coordinate maneuvers with other operators. Receive conjunction warnings directly from the network.

STM Providers

Build commercial services on open, verifiable data. Create value-added products without vendor lock-in or exclusive data agreements.

Researchers

Access live space data for analysis, algorithm development, and academic research without expensive commercial data licenses.

Academia

Universities and research institutions can integrate real-time space data into curricula, thesis projects, and collaborative research programs.

Students & Hobbyists

Learn astrodynamics with production data. Build satellite trackers, analyze orbital mechanics, or contribute to open source space safety tools.

Encrypted Conjunction Assessment

Compute collision risks on encrypted satellite positions. Nobody sees your orbit — everyone stays safe.

Why operators won't share their best data today

National Security

Military and intelligence satellites have classified orbits. Sharing precise ephemeris reveals capabilities, coverage gaps, and mission intent to adversaries.

Commercial IP

Constellation geometry is a multi-billion-dollar investment. Precise orbital slots, station-keeping strategies, and coverage patterns are proprietary trade secrets.

Liability Exposure

Sharing data creates legal obligations. If you share ephemeris and a conjunction is missed, you may bear greater liability than if you had shared nothing at all.

How homomorphic encryption changes everything

Math on Ciphertext

The network computes d² = Δx² + Δy² + Δz² entirely on encrypted data. The math works — the data stays locked.

Only Distance Revealed

Only the conjunction assessor can decrypt the result — and the result is a distance, not a position. Neither operator's orbit is ever exposed.

Private Direct Streams

Encrypted ephemeris flows through direct authenticated libp2p streams to the assessor — never broadcast on GossipSub. Ciphertexts are sensitive: if public, anyone could compute HE distances against them.

How It Works

Operators send encrypted ephemeris via direct streams to a mutually-chosen assessor. The assessor computes distance on ciphertext using Microsoft SEAL (BFV scheme) — ciphertexts never touch the public network.

Why This Changes Everything

The security and operational implications for the space industry

Classified Satellites Can Participate

For the first time, military and intelligence satellites can participate in global conjunction assessment without compromising operational security. The encrypted protocol ensures that even the network operators cannot determine orbital parameters.

Safeguards Billions in Investment

A constellation's orbital geometry represents years of R&D and billions in launch costs. HE-encrypted conjunction assessment lets operators protect their most valuable IP — the precise positions that define their competitive advantage — while still ensuring space safety.

Minimum Viable STM Baseline

This is the absolute minimum foundation for a functional, secure space traffic management system. Without privacy-preserving computation, global STM coordination requires operators to trust a central authority with their most sensitive data — a non-starter for most.

Built Into FlatBuffers

HE encryption is integrated at the serialization layer via the he_encrypted FlatBuffers attribute. Mark fields for encryption in your schema — the toolchain handles key management, ciphertext serialization, and homomorphic operations.

Real-Time Over P2P

Operators stream encrypted ephemeris via direct authenticated libp2p channels to a mutually-chosen assessor node. Assessments run continuously as new encrypted positions arrive — not as a periodic batch job gated by a central coordinator.

Microsoft SEAL BFV

Powered by Microsoft SEAL v4.1.1, an industry-standard homomorphic encryption library. BFV scheme with 4096-polynomial degree provides 128-bit security with ~2KB ciphertext overhead per encrypted value.

Anti-Probing Defenses

What stops an adversary from spamming fake ephemeris to triangulate hidden satellites? Defense in depth.

Private Data Path

Encrypted ephemeris never touches GossipSub. Ciphertexts flow only through direct authenticated libp2p streams to the assessor. Since HE math is permissionless, public ciphertexts would let anyone compute distances against them with arbitrary probes.

Identity Staking

Each SDN identity must post a cryptographic bond or accumulate reputation before participating in HE assessments. Malicious behavior triggers slashing — making Sybil attacks economically prohibitive.

Rate Limiting

Each identity is limited to N ephemeris submissions and M assessment requests per epoch. Limits scale with reputation and stake, preventing brute-force grid scanning.

Threshold-Only Output

Assessments return a binary SAFE/ALERT, not the computed distance. Precise distance is only disclosed when both parties opt in after an alert — reducing information leakage per query to a single bit.

Anomaly Detection

The network monitors for scanning signatures: grid-spaced positions, systematic orbital sweeps, and ephemeris that violates Keplerian motion. Suspicious patterns trigger identity flagging and stake forfeiture.

Differential Privacy

Calibrated Laplace noise is added to the encrypted distance before threshold comparison. Multiple queries against the same target produce inconsistent results, defeating triangulation attempts.

Design principle: Ciphertexts are sensitive — HE arithmetic is permissionless, so anyone with your ciphertext can compute against it. The primary defense is architectural: encrypted ephemeris never leaves a private channel to the assessor. Beyond that, each assessment reveals at most one bit, requires bilateral consent, costs stake, is rate-limited, and includes noise.

HE operations per time step

~2KB

ciphertext per encrypted value

128-bit

security (SEAL BFV 4096)

private positions revealed

Encrypted conjunction assessment is live in the FlatBuffers fork and shipping in the Space Data Network by end of February 2026. This is the first implementation of homomorphic encryption for space traffic management.

Security & Cryptography

End-to-end encryption with verifiable digital identity

Application Layer

Space Data Standards (SDS Schemas)

▼

Crypto Layer

Ed25519 Signatures • X25519 ECDH • AES-256-CTR

▼

Transport Layer

Noise Protocol • libp2p • GossipSub

▼

Network Layer

IPFS DHT • Circuit Relay • WebSocket Bridge

Public Key Infrastructure Demo

See how Alice encrypts a message that only Bob can decrypt using ECIES

Alice

Sender

Public: Click Generate

Private: ••••••••

Encrypted Message

Bob

Receiver

Public: Click Generate

Private: ••••••••

Message from Alice:

Ciphertext (Base64):

Encrypted output will appear here...

Decrypted Message:

Decrypted output will appear here...

How ECIES Works

Key Exchange: Alice generates an ephemeral X25519 key pair

ECDH: Alice's ephemeral private + Bob's public = shared secret

KDF: HKDF-SHA256 derives AES-256 encryption key from shared secret

Encrypt: AES-256-CTR encrypts the message (length-preserving)

Authenticate: HMAC-SHA256 provides integrity (Encrypt-then-MAC)

Send: Ephemeral public key + nonce + ciphertext + MAC sent to Bob

Adversarial Security

Rational actors drain compromised keys. Undrained value proves key integrity.

What is Adversarial Security?

Cryptographic public keys can derive addresses on cryptocurrency networks. By depositing value at those derived addresses, you create a game-theoretic security bond. A rational actor who compromises the private key will drain the funds — the payout is immediate, anonymous, and risk-free. This makes the balance a real-time indicator of key integrity: undrained value implies an uncompromised key, because no rational adversary would sit on a free withdrawal.

Public Key

Derive Address

Deposit Value

3rd Party

Monitor

Compromised

Trusted

Key Derivation

A public key used for signing data can mathematically derive addresses on multiple blockchain networks (BIP-32/44). One key pair serves both authentication and value custody — no additional infrastructure required.

Value as Trust Signal

Derived addresses are permissionless — anyone can deposit funds to signal trust in a key. The depositor stakes value on the key's integrity: self-bonding (owner deposits) or third-party bonding (others deposit). The aggregate balance quantifies the economic cost of compromise.

Rational Actor Assumption

A compromised key gives the attacker access to both impersonation and fund withdrawal. Draining funds is the dominant strategy: it's immediate, irreversible, and carries zero marginal risk since the key is already compromised. Multiple adversaries with the same key create a race condition that accelerates drainage. Undrained value therefore implies no compromise.

Real-Time Verification

Blockchain state is publicly auditable and updates every block. This provides continuous, permissionless proof of key integrity — not a point-in-time certificate, but a live signal. Any observer can independently verify the balance without trusting a certificate authority or revocation list.

Your Derived Addresses

These addresses are mathematically derived from your HD wallet keys. Anyone can verify the derivation and send funds to increase trust in your keys.

Bitcoin m/44'/0'/0'/0/0

--

-- BTC

Ethereum m/44'/60'/0'/0/0

--

-- ETH

Solana m/44'/501'/0'/0'

--

-- SOL

SUI m/44'/784'/0'/0'/0'

--

-- SUI

Cosmos m/44'/118'/0'/0/0

--

-- ATOM

Cardano m/1852'/1815'/0'/0/0

--

-- ADA

Or connect your existing Web3 wallet

Documentation

Everything you need to build with SDN

Quick Start

Get running in minutes

Desktop (Electron)

# Clone and install
git clone https://github.com/DigitalArsenal/space-data-network.git
cd space-data-network
npm install

# Build the UI and launch the desktop app
npm run desktop

Server (Go)

# Download and install
curl -Lo spacedatanetwork \
  https://github.com/DigitalArsenal/space-data-network/releases/latest/download/spacedatanetwork-linux-amd64
chmod +x spacedatanetwork

# Initialize and start
./spacedatanetwork init
./spacedatanetwork daemon

Browser (TypeScript)

import { SDNNode } from './sdn-js/dist/esm/index.js';

const node = new SDNNode();
await node.start();

// Subscribe to orbital data
node.subscribe('OMM', (data, peer) => {
  console.log(`Received from ${peer}`);
});

// Publish conjunction data
await node.publish('CDM', conjunctionData);

Getting Started

Quick start guides for all platforms

Server installation
JavaScript SDK setup
Browser integration
First data exchange

Architecture

Deep dive into SDN internals

Network topology
Protocol stack
Data flow
Security model

Security

Cryptography and identity

Transport encryption
Data at rest
Digital identity
Key management

API Reference

Complete API documentation

Server CLI
JavaScript SDK
HTTP endpoints
RPC interface

Schemas

Space Data Standards reference

All SDS schemas
Field definitions
Validation rules
Conversion utilities

Deployment

Production deployment guides

Docker / Kubernetes
Cloud providers
High availability
Monitoring

Frequently Asked Questions

No. SDN uses cryptographic primitives (keys, signatures) but is not a blockchain. There are no tokens, no mining, no consensus mechanisms. SDN is pure infrastructure for data exchange. Your identity can be derived from BIP-39 seed phrases and is compatible with blockchain ecosystems, but SDN itself operates independently.

Space traffic management data is too critical to depend on any single provider. Centralized systems create single points of failure and geopolitical dependencies. SDN ensures that conjunction warnings and orbital data remain available even if individual nodes or organizations go offline. The network self-heals and routes around failures.

SDN is complementary infrastructure that enables organizations to share data directly with each other. Here's how it relates to existing SSA data providers:

Space-Track - Authoritative catalog from the 18th Space Defense Squadron. SDN can ingest and redistribute this data while adding commercial and international sources.
CelesTrak - Dr. T.S. Kelso's invaluable TLE distribution service. SDN supports the same data formats and can extend CelesTrak data with real-time operator ephemerides.
ESA DISCOS - European Space Agency's database on space objects. SDN enables interoperability between ESA data and other international sources.
EU SST - European Union Space Surveillance & Tracking. SDN can bridge EU SST data with global partners.
JSC Vimpel - Russia's independent space object catalog maintained by the Keldysh Institute and Vimpel Corporation, with data from 80+ optical systems across multiple countries. SDN can interoperate with Vimpel catalog data alongside Western sources.
JAXA SSA - Japan's Space Situational Awareness system operated from the Kamisaibara and Bisei Space Guard Centers. SDN enables sharing of JAXA-tracked objects with the broader international community.
ISRO NETRA - India's Network for space object TRacking and Analysis, providing independent SSA capability. SDN can bridge NETRA data with other national catalogs.
China's SSA Network - China is building an independent space object catalog using space-based and ground sensors operated by the PLA and CNSA. SDN's open protocol allows integration if and when this data becomes available.
Commercial SSA providers (LeoLabs, ExoAnalytic, etc.) - SDN provides an open data exchange layer that commercial providers can use to share data with customers.

Unlike centralized services, SDN has no single point of failure, no usage quotas, and enables direct peer-to-peer data sharing with cryptographic verification of data provenance.

Yes. SDN includes edge relays that bridge WebSocket connections to the full P2P network. The JavaScript SDK handles this automatically - just call node.start() and you're connected. Browsers can subscribe to real-time data, publish messages, and verify signatures.

Every message on SDN is cryptographically signed by its publisher. Entity Profile Manifests (EPM) link public keys (derived from the publisher's private key) to organizational identities. You can verify exactly who published any piece of data and whether it has been tampered with. Trust decisions remain with recipients - SDN provides the cryptographic tools.

Due to the distributed nature of IPFS and libp2p, there is no central authority that can remove data from the network. Content is replicated across participating nodes and addressed by its cryptographic hash. Only the original author who holds the signing key can issue updates or retractions. This is by design - it ensures that critical space safety data cannot be censored by any single entity, but it also means participants should carefully consider what they publish. Nodes can individually choose to stop pinning or serving specific content, but this doesn't remove it from other nodes that have copies.

Only Space Data Standards (SDS) formatted data is allowed on the network. This ensures interoperability and allows all participants to parse and validate incoming data.

To onboard your data:

Use the SDK - The JavaScript and Go SDKs include converters for common formats (TLE, CCSDS XML/KVN, etc.) to SDS FlatBuffers.
AI-Powered Assistant - An AI assistant is available to help map your existing data schemas to SDS formats and generate conversion code.
Request New Schemas - If your data doesn't fit existing schemas, open an issue on the SDS repository to propose additions.

SDS FlatBuffers are always backwards compatible by design - new fields can be added without breaking existing parsers. See the FlatBuffers schema evolution documentation for details. The network software automatically updates when new SDS versions are released.

Downloads

Get the Space Data Network tools for your use case

Server Node

Full SDN node for infrastructure operators. Run a persistent peer in the network, relay data, and serve as a bootstrap node.

macOS

Apple Silicon & Intel

ARM64 (M1/M2/M3) AMD64 (Intel)

Linux

x86_64 & ARM64

AMD64 (x86_64) ARM64

Windows

64-bit

AMD64 (64-bit)

Docker

Container image

ghcr.io/digitalarsenal/spacedatanetwork

Desktop Application

GUI application for end users. Browse space data, manage your identity, encrypt/decrypt messages, and visualize orbital information.

macOS

Universal Binary

SpaceDataNetwork.dmg

Linux

AppImage & Debian

AppImage (Universal) .deb (Debian/Ubuntu)

Windows

Installer & Portable

Installer (.exe) Portable (.zip)

Mobile

iOS & Android

Coming Soon

JavaScript SDK

Connect from Node.js or browsers - lightweight client for web applications

Terminal

npm --prefix sdn-js install

Space DataNetwork

Built for the Future of Space

Built on IPFS

Space Data Standards

Transport Encryption

Encryption at Rest

Digital Identity

Cross-Platform

Powered by IPFS and Google FlatBuffers

Network Architecture

Run a Full Node

Content Addressing & Pinning

Data Input

Content Hash (CID)

Distributed Storage

Tamper-Proof

Permanent References

Deduplication

Selective Pinning

Data Marketplace

1. Publish Data

2. Per-Customer Encryption

3. Payment

4. Access Granted

Data Products

Plugin Marketplace

Payment Options

Open Source Astrodynamics

Orbit Propagation

Observation Association

Orbit Determination

Conjunction Assessment

Why Space Traffic Management Matters

The Wake-Up Call: Iridium 33 & Cosmos 2251

The Scale of the Problem Today

Projected Growth of Space Objects

Who Benefits from Open Infrastructure?

Space Agencies

Satellite Operators

STM Providers

Researchers

Academia

Students & Hobbyists

Encrypted Conjunction Assessment

Why operators won't share their best data today

National Security

Commercial IP

Liability Exposure

How homomorphic encryption changes everything

Math on Ciphertext

Only Distance Revealed

Private Direct Streams

How It Works

Why This Changes Everything

Classified Satellites Can Participate

Safeguards Billions in Investment

Minimum Viable STM Baseline

Built Into FlatBuffers

Real-Time Over P2P

Microsoft SEAL BFV

Anti-Probing Defenses

Private Data Path

Identity Staking

Rate Limiting

Threshold-Only Output

Anomaly Detection

Differential Privacy

No Central Authority

Peer-to-Peer

Censorship Resistant

Always Available

Verifiable

Security & Cryptography

Public Key Infrastructure Demo

How ECIES Works

Adversarial Security

What is Adversarial Security?

Key Derivation

Value as Trust Signal

Rational Actor Assumption

Space Data
Network