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Spire offers way to track ships even when they are trying to hide

The smallsat company Spire is now offering what it calls its ‘Dark Shipping’ and ‘Spoofing’ Detection” option, using its 100-satellite constellation to track ships even when they are trying to hide.

Spire says the new dark shipping detection solution taps into the company’s constellation of more than 100 satellites to provide near real-time global AIS [Automatic Identification System] message position validation to uncover suspicious activity and pinpoint a vessel without the need for an approximate location.

“For a long time, having the tools to accurately identify and track ships that are attempting to hide their activities or location has been the missing key to preventing sanctions evasion, illegal fishing, human trafficking and many more pressing societal issues,” said Peter Mabson, CEO, Spire Maritime.

Hat tip to Robert Pratt of Pratt on Texas, who emailed me this press release and noted that this was “just one example of how lower launch costs are driving new things most would not guess.”

To me, this is both good and bad. Spire’s tracking capability gets it another way to make money as well as to track illegal activity. It also allows governments another way to track everyone to keep them from doing anything the authorities dislike.

When we had a government that saw itself as the servant to the people, I would not be so worried about the latter. With our present corrupt government, misuse of this information by those in power is now a real concern.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 

The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

2 comments

  • t-dub

    The article says Spire uses AIS information which is a beacon signal ships transmit so they can be tracked. What they fail to mention is how they actually track ships that turn this system off going “dark”. They say they can do it but do not say how which makes me curious.

  • Jeff Wright

    This is why I like Orbital Antenna Farms-forget them being above most ASAT reach or nightsky friendly. Megaconstellations help the NWO watch us.

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