Daniel Stouch, Susan Latiff, Rob Hyland, Daniel Duggan, Patrick Hosman

Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation, and Education Conference (I/ITSEC), Orlando, Florida (3 December 2025) 

Tutorial Abstract

Space has captured the imagination of billions of people around the world and has become essential to our daily quality of life. As commercial companies demonstrate more and more success with spaceflight and space exploration, there has been a recent resurgence in humanity’s interest in space.

Training and educating people to become successful space professionals is extraordinarily challenging. Preparing students to conduct safe and effective space operations demands that they master complex (and often counterintuitive) orbital dynamics, understand physical space vehicles they are operating and maneuvering, and learn how to integrate uncertain or incomplete data for decision-making while avoiding hazards such as space weather effects and conjunctions. Mastery of orbital mechanics, satellite maneuvering, and decision-making under uncertainty requires not only technical knowledge but also strong spatial reasoning, a cognitive skill that traditional educational tools often fail to support.

High-fidelity simulators incorporating augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) to improve operator and analyst proficiency will be pervasive in the future, but a mismatch currently exists between the pace at which the global space domain is evolving and the tools, technologies, and course materials available to educators in the classroom. For example, many existing education tools are antiquated, requiring instructors to rely on analog aids such as “beach balls and hula hoops” and celestial sphere models to convey these complex 3D relationships. Instructors attempt to familiarize students with dynamic space operations using digital 2D artifacts such as slide decks, and complex and expensive computer modeling programs when their budgets allow. These approaches often increase cognitive load and slow learning, especially for individuals entering the space domain without a strong technical background. And current 2D desktop displays are particularly taxing to new learners as they begin their education, and such displays limit training effectiveness and extend the time needed to master the material.

This tutorial introduces foundational space concepts, including orbital regimes, satellite constellations, and classical orbital elements, through examples of AR/VR-based training solutions in immersive 3D environments. The tutorial will present the realized benefits from using AR/VR over current training methods such as reducing perceptual and cognitive burden compared to 2D desktop screen displays that represent orbital physics which requires significant mental spatial transformations to perceive the 3D context. Attendees will gain insight into how immersive technologies can enhance space education and leave better equipped to teach complex concepts in more engaging and effective ways.

For More Information

To learn more, contact Dan Stouch.

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