Jaxson was born in Oregon and raised on Maui. He is a graduating junior at Purdue University, majoring in computer science with a concentration in systems programming. He has particularly enjoyed his classes in graphics programming, operating systems, and compilers. He also enjoys participating in capture the flag competitive hacking competitions as an officer of b01lers, Purdue’s nationally ranked cybersecurity team. In his free time, Jaxson likes working on personal programming projects, playing volleyball, being involved in his church, and making music (he plays the drums and is currently picking up the bass guitar). In the future, he hopes to work and start a family back home on Maui.
Home Island: Maui
Institution when accepted: Purdue University
Project Site: United States Space Force, Kihei, Maui
Mentor: John Marlia & Ned Davis
Project title: Upgrading Image Parsing in Space Domain Awareness Software Systems
Project Abstract:
Space Domain Awareness (SDA) initiatives work to detect, track, and characterize objects in orbit around Earth to ensure the safety, stability, and security of space operations. A leading mission of the United States Space Force (USSF) is SDA operations, research, and development. One of the research tools currently being developed by the USSF uses telescope images to support its SDA initiatives. However, these images are stored in an uncommon file format and contain proprietary metadata that prevents them from being processed natively by the current software, leading to roadblocks and inefficiencies in the data ingress process. Therefore, the goal of this project is to design and implement a software solution that enables the loading and parsing of these raw telescope images. Since it is not feasible to change or update the target platform, the solution must integrate with the existing software. It is also not possible to rely on third-party software or tools, so the solution must be developed fully in-house and needs to be self-contained. During development, a suite of procedurally generated images were created to test and benchmark the implementation, helping to ensure robustness and full coverage of potential inputs and scenarios. This solution will improve the existing data pipeline and strengthen SDA initiatives for the USSF.Â