Kpler, one of the leading providers of global trade information, and Airbus, a leader in space and aviation technologies, have recently signed a strategic agreement to launch an independent ship tracking service. This service provides daily identification of ships and helps Kpler create a more comprehensive picture of maritime activities.
Details of the Agreement and New Capabilities
Kpler's new services focus on identifying ships without reliance on the AIS (Automatic Identification System) signal. This capability will be particularly valuable when the AIS signal is disrupted for various reasons, such as loss of communication or geographic position spoofing. Using Airbus's SPOT Earth observation satellites, this service captures high-resolution images daily. The resolution of these images is 1.5 meters with a coverage of 60 kilometers, enabling the identification of ships at sea and in port with the help of advanced artificial intelligence.
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The Importance of AIS Signal and Existing Challenges
The AIS signal is monitored by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and serves as a foundation for ship reporting, surveillance, and safety in the shipping industry. This system provides various information, including the position, speed, course, depth, and destination of ships. Kpler receives billions of AIS signals daily, and this information alone cannot cover all aspects of maritime activities.
Satellite images are added as a complementary layer to this information. However, ship signals may be manipulated for various reasons. Sometimes, this disruption occurs due to widespread disturbances in a specific area, and sometimes a particular ship deliberately tries to hide its position. This agreement allows Kpler to provide an independent, satellite-based assessment that helps differentiate these conditions and identifies ships that are genuinely trying to conceal themselves.
Jean-Charles Gordon, Vice President of the Marine and Logistics Division at Kpler, emphasized: “No data source can tell the whole story. By combining AIS data with satellite images and other independent sources, we can provide a clearer, more complete, and verifiable picture of what is happening at sea. When a ship's AIS signal disappears, this combined information helps us distinguish between widespread signal disruptions and the deliberate efforts of specific ships to evade detection. This distinction is vital to ensuring transparency, enhancing maritime security, and maintaining trust in global transportation.”
With the collaboration of Airbus and Kpler, customers will have greater confidence regarding the movements of the ships they monitor and in the decisions they make.
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