Home›Maneuver Tracker›Close Approaches›COSMOS 2438 ⟷ COSMOS 588
HighProximity
RussiaCOSMOS 2438NORAD 32955 · launched May 2008Military payload
4.15kmPredicted miss distance
RussiaCOSMOS 588NORAD 6845 · launched Oct 1973Military payload
Final forecastFinal forecast, made minutes before the pass.
Closest approach9 Nov 202608:55 UTC
Relative speed10.98 km/sat the closest approach
Altitude1,484 kmlow Earth orbit
Last confirmed9 Nov08:52 UTC · final forecast
Track COSMOS 2438Track COSMOS 588All approaches
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RU COSMOS 2438 and RU COSMOS 588 were predicted to reach a closest approach of 4.15 km at 2026-11-09 08:55 UTC, at a relative speed of 10.98 km/s. Final forecast, made minutes 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 2438Payload
NORAD 32955
CountryCIS
Launched2008-05-23
OrbitLEO · 1,476 × 1,509 km
COSPAR2008-025C
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →
COSMOS 588Payload
NORAD 6845
CountryCIS
Launched1973-10-02
OrbitLEO · 1,447 × 1,493 km
COSPAR1973-069A
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →

Where This Happens

Altitude context
DEBRIS BELT 700–1000 KM2006001,0001,5002,000 kmTHIS PASS · 1484 KMISS 420Starlink 550

At 1484 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

1 predicted pass under 10 km
Pair history · COSMOS 2438 ⟷ COSMOS 588
2026-11-09 08:554.15 km Final forecast10.98 km/s1,484 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 Nothing is overwritten: a withdrawn forecast keeps its figure, with the newer check beside it, and the best estimate after the pass is a row of its own.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
8 Nov 12:32 UTC4.15 km Forecast9 Nov 08:55 UTC8 Nov 07:26 UTCRe-check
8 Nov 10:08 UTC3.90 km Forecast9 Nov 08:55 UTC8 Nov 03:34 UTCRe-check
8 Nov 09:49 UTC9.28 km Forecast9 Nov 08:55 UTC8 Nov 03:34 UTCScreen

These Objects Elsewhere

Other screened approaches · 7 days
2.87 km11-09 12:52 UTC
COSMOS 2438SL-14 DEB
3.94 km11-10 20:55 UTC
COSMOS 2438SL-8 DEB
4.71 km11-06 17:12 UTC
COSMOS 2438COSMOS 825

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 →