Home›Maneuver Tracker›Close Approaches›STARCATCHER-1 ⟷ FLOCK 4J-9
HighProximity
United StatesSTARCATCHER-1NORAD 100921 · launched Oct 2026Payload
2.33kmPredicted miss distance
United StatesFLOCK 4J-9NORAD 101143 · launched Oct 2026Payload
Final forecastFinal forecast, made 13 min before the pass.
Closest approach26 Oct 202614:00 UTC
Drift speed1.8 m/s7 km/h, seen from FLOCK 4J-9
Altitude522 kmlow Earth orbit
Last confirmed26 Oct13:47 UTC · final forecast
Track STARCATCHER-1Track FLOCK 4J-9All approaches
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US STARCATCHER-1 and US FLOCK 4J-9 were predicted to reach a closest approach of 2.33 km at 2026-10-26 14:00 UTC, drifting past at about 1.8 m/s (7 km/h) as seen from FLOCK 4J-9. Final forecast, made 13 min before the pass. Miss distance and time of closest approach are computed by propagating the latest published orbital elements for both objects, and each pass is re-checked every 20 minutes as new element sets are published. See the Satellite Maneuver Tracker for the live picture and space situational awareness for context.

Why it mattersBoth objects are catalogued as payloads. Screening continues as new element sets arrive; operators act on their own conjunction data.

The Two Objects

Dossiers from the satellite directory
STARCATCHER-1Payload
NORAD 100921
CountryUS
Launched2026-10-01
OrbitLEO · 511 × 516 km
COSPAR2026-227AQ
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →
FLOCK 4J-9Payload
NORAD 101143
CountryUS
Launched2026-10-01
OrbitLEO · 512 × 518 km
COSPAR2026-227CX
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →

Where This Happens

Altitude context
DEBRIS BELT 700–1000 KM2006001,0001,5002,000 kmTHIS PASS · 522 KMISS 420Starlink 550

At 522 km this pass sits in low Earth orbit. Objects here stay up for decades: there is too little atmospheric drag to clean the band naturally. Why crowded bands matter →

History Between This Pair

2 predicted passes under 10 km
Pair history · STARCATCHER-1 ⟷ FLOCK 4J-9
2026-10-26 14:002.33 km Final forecast0.00 km/s522 kmShown above
2026-10-26 13:062.90 km Final forecast0.00 km/s514 kmView →

Repeat encounters are common for objects in near-intersecting orbital planes. Each pass is re-screened as fresh element sets arrive; "Final forecast" means the screening still predicted it within 45 minutes of its time, "Not re-confirmed" means later screening stopped finding it.

Forecast Record

Every figure published for the pass shown above, newest first. Nothing is overwritten: a withdrawn forecast keeps its figure, with the newer check beside it, and the best estimate after the pass is a row of its own.
Computed · figure · predicted time · orbit data · by
26 Oct 09:03 UTC2.33 km Forecast26 Oct 14:00 UTC26 Oct 04:45 UTCRe-check
26 Oct 03:03 UTC3.25 km Forecast26 Oct 14:01 UTC25 Oct 22:45 UTCRe-check
25 Oct 19:01 UTC516 m Forecast26 Oct 14:00 UTC25 Oct 14:45 UTCRe-check
25 Oct 13:46 UTC890 m Forecast26 Oct 13:50 UTC25 Oct 08:45 UTCRe-check
25 Oct 13:26 UTC1.63 km Forecast26 Oct 13:23 UTC25 Oct 08:45 UTCScreen
25 Oct 13:06 UTC3.61 km Forecast26 Oct 13:06 UTC25 Oct 08:45 UTCScreen

These Objects Elsewhere

Other screened approaches · 7 days
491 m10-24 11:20 UTC
OTTER 24CFLOCK 4J-9
625 m10-26 05:28 UTC
STARCATCHER-1HOTSAT-3
679 m10-26 06:13 UTC
STARCATCHER-1HOTSAT-3

How These Numbers Are Computed

Miss distance and TCA come from propagating the latest published orbital elements for both objects and searching for the minimum separation over the screening window. Element sets carry kilometre-scale uncertainty, so figures here describe a close pass, not a collision prediction; a change in either object's published elements re-computes the pass automatically. What is a conjunction? → How conjunction assessment works →

Cite this encounter: Orbital Radar — “STARCATCHER-1 ⟷ FLOCK 4J-9: 2.33 km predicted close approach”, https://orbitalradar.com/conjunction/100921-101143 (accessed 2026-10-27).