Special Session

Maritime Communications and Surveillance: Advanced Satellite Constellations

Maritime authorities increasingly require communications and surveillance services that extend beyond coastal coverage, support trusted information exchange, and improve awareness of both cooperative and non-cooperative vessels. This Special Session will examine current activities and future developments in advanced satellite constellations, with particular attention to the VHF Data Exchange System (VDES) and spaceborne active and passive surveillance sensors.
The session will explore the evolution of these technologies from demonstrations and emerging services toward trusted operational capabilities, including secure maritime data exchange, interoperability and deployment challenges. It will also address the use of radar, radio-frequency and optical sensors for search and rescue, authenticated vessel and voyage reporting, and detection of non-cooperative vessels. Presentations will be followed by a Q&A session.