The skies around Washington, D.C., are getting a tech upgrade.
The National Capital Region’s (NCR) post-9/11 air defense system is getting an artificial intelligence (AI) boost, as cameras and lasers that monitor the skies for threats have been upgraded.
The new AI-based visual recognition and identification system – dubbed the Enhanced Regional Situational Awareness (ERSA) system – is being spread throughout the NCR and offers an exponential increase in capability compared to the old system, according to a statement from the Defense Department.
“If we need to validate some radar data that we can’t for sure say what it is, we can utilize the camera system as an asset to look in that set location to assist in the validation process,” said Air Force Master Sgt. Kendrick Wilburn, lead for ERSA operations at the Joint Air Defense Operations Center (JADOC) at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C.
The cameras are equipped with a “naked eye-type of view” – also known as an electro-optical visual – and an infrared view of the landscape. According to Wilburn, the new AI-capable cameras are a vast improvement over the legacy system.
“You have an extended range – you can see further. We went from standard definition to high definition. The fidelity is incredible,” Wilburn said. “On the infrared side, you have multiple enhanced features like IR colorization. For example, you could utilize a RGB [red, green, blue] filter to where … the object that we’re tracking sticks out via heat signature.”
The cameras also feature an integrated visual warning system, including a laser that can target an aircraft’s cockpit. According to the DoD, these new lasers are deployed when aircraft deviate from their flight plan, fail to establish radio contact, or don’t comply with Federal Aviation Administration special flight rules.
The new cameras, developed by the small tech company Teleidoscope, are replacing the 2002 system that had itself replaced the original cameras installed after 9/11. The ERSA system is monitored by the Eastern Air Defense Sector in Rome, N.Y.
The Defense Innovation Unit helped Teleidoscope secure funding from the Air Force and the Accelerate the Procurement and Fielding of Innovative Technologies program to quickly field the new camera system.
Two of the new cameras are now operational, with plans to install seven more each year moving forward.
