Home›Maneuver Tracker›Close Approaches›COSMOS 2191 ⟷ COSMOS 946
HighProximity
RussiaCOSMOS 2191NORAD 21980 · launched Jun 1992Military payload
4.75kmPredicted miss distance
RussiaCOSMOS 946NORAD 10292 · launched Aug 1977Military payload
Final forecastFinal forecast, made 6 min before the pass.
Closest approach27 Oct 202610:13 UTC
Relative speed9.83 km/sat the closest approach
Altitude1,480 kmlow Earth orbit
Last confirmed27 Oct10:07 UTC · final forecast
Track COSMOS 2191Track COSMOS 946All approaches
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RU COSMOS 2191 and RU COSMOS 946 were predicted to reach a closest approach of 4.75 km at 2026-10-27 10:13 UTC, at a relative speed of 9.83 km/s. Final forecast, made 6 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
COSMOS 2191Payload
NORAD 21980
CountryCIS
Launched1992-06-03
OrbitLEO · 1,472 × 1,502 km
COSPAR1992-030E
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →
COSMOS 946Payload
NORAD 10292
CountryCIS
Launched1977-08-24
OrbitLEO · 1,462 × 1,510 km
COSPAR1977-079H
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →

Where This Happens

Altitude context
DEBRIS BELT 700–1000 KM2006001,0001,5002,000 kmTHIS PASS · 1480 KMISS 420Starlink 550

At 1480 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 · COSMOS 2191 ⟷ COSMOS 946
2026-10-27 22:456.50 km Final forecast9.81 km/s1,493 kmView →
2026-10-27 10:134.75 km Final forecast9.83 km/s1,480 kmShown above

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 Nothing is overwritten: a withdrawn forecast keeps its figure, with the newer check beside it, and the best estimate after the pass is a row of its own.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
27 Oct 09:06 UTC4.75 km Forecast27 Oct 10:13 UTC26 Oct 23:23 UTCRe-check
26 Oct 16:41 UTC4.74 km Forecast27 Oct 10:13 UTC26 Oct 05:44 UTCRe-check
26 Oct 12:07 UTC4.73 km Forecast27 Oct 10:13 UTC25 Oct 23:04 UTCRe-check
26 Oct 11:47 UTC5.47 km Forecast27 Oct 10:13 UTC25 Oct 23:04 UTCScreen

These Objects Elsewhere

Other screened approaches · 7 days
4.82 km10-27 08:04 UTC
COSMOS 2191COSMOS 735
5.38 km10-26 16:41 UTC
COSMOS 2191COSMOS 644
5.70 km10-27 04:17 UTC
COSMOS 2191COSMOS 1823 DEB

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 — “COSMOS 2191 ⟷ COSMOS 946: 4.75 km predicted close approach”, https://orbitalradar.com/conjunction/10292-21980 (accessed 2026-10-28).