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Home Academy Conjunctions & Collision Avoidance What a conjunction is
LESSON 01 OF 6

What a conjunction is

Beginner ~9 min Slide deck Free

A conjunction is a probabilistic forecast — not a collision report. Most are completely routine.

A conjunction is a probabilistic forecast — not a collision report. Most are completely routine.

What this lesson covers

Not the Same as a Collision

A conjunction flags that two tracked objects will pass within a defined screening threshold at a predicted time.

The Scale of the Problem

As object counts grow, conjunction events scale as N², making SSA screening a core, ongoing workload.

What Orbital Radar Can Show

Orbital Radar surfaces conjunction data to give you context — not just alerts.

Key facts

💡The vast majority of conjunctions require zero action.

Common misconceptions

MYTH

"Two satellites nearly collided in orbit"

REALITY

They passed within a screening threshold. The actual probability of collision was likely below 1-in-10,000.

MYTH

"Near miss" implies danger

REALITY

1 km miss distance inside a 5 km error ellipsoid is far riskier than 50 m inside a 10 m ellipsoid. Context is everything.

A conjunction is a probabilistic forecast, not a collision.

Mastering this distinction is the foundation of all conjunction assessment and space traffic management work.

All lessons in Conjunctions & Collision Avoidance
01What a conjunction is~9 min02Miss distance + uncertainty~9 min03Screening windows~10 min04Avoidance maneuvers~9 min05Headlines vs reality~9 min06Interpret risk calmly~9 min
All 6 LessonsMiss distance + uncertainty →
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