# Raw Imagery Impacting Your AI: Should You Care?

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.38265 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.38265/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 7 of its 17 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 29 Sep 2026.

## Builds on (most cited first, 7 of 7)

- [YOLOX: Exceeding YOLO Series in 2021](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2107.08430/) (2021)
- [Unlocking the Use of Raw Multispectral Earth Observation Imagery for Onboard Artificial Intelligence](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.11891/) (2023)
- [Enhancing Maritime Situational Awareness through End-to-End Onboard Raw Data Analysis](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.03403/) (2024)
- [Explaining raw data complexity to improve satellite onboard processing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.06858/) (2025)
- [Rethinking Satellite Image Restoration for Onboard AI: A Lightweight Learning-Based Approach](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.12807/) (2026)
- [Optimizing Latent Representations for Robust Building Damage Assessment Onboard Earth Observation Satellites](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.29575/) (2026)
- [TriCCOT: Tri-part Convolutional Conformal Transformer for Onboard Space Object Detection](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.08659/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Onboard AI is gaining interest for space applications such as vessel, wildfire, and cloud detection, where real-time processing can improve mission reactivity and reduce downlink needs. However, onboard models may operate on raw or minimally processed imagery rather than on restored ground products. This study evaluates how image degradation affects object detection by varying Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), Modulation Transfer Function (MTF) at Nyquist, and Ground Sampling Distance (GSD). Controlled degradations are applied to Very High Resolution Maxar imagery, and three lightweight detectors, YOLOv5s, YOLOX-S, and NanoDet, are evaluated on the resulting operating points. The results show that the impact of image quality depends on the degradation mechanism, and that increasing degradation does not necessarily lead to a proportional decrease in vessel detection performance. GSD produces the most consistent performance shift, while MTF and SNR effects depend more on the model and resolution. Severe combinations of blur and noise produce the largest losses. These results provide task-level information that can support sensor, processing, and AI trade-offs for future onboard systems.