Home›Maneuver Tracker›Close Approaches›SBSS (USA 216) ⟷ OBJECT K
CriticalProximity
United StatesSBSS (USA 216)NORAD 37168 · launched Sep 2010Military payload
668mPredicted miss distance
JapanOBJECT KNORAD 49404 · launched Nov 2021Payload
Final forecastFinal forecast, made 20 min before the pass.
Closest approach23 Oct 202605:36 UTC
Relative speed14.63 km/sat the closest approach
Altitude477 kmlow Earth orbit
Last confirmed23 Oct05:16 UTC · final forecast
Track SBSS (USA 216)Track OBJECT KAll approaches
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US SBSS (USA 216) and JP OBJECT K were predicted to reach a closest approach of 668 m at 2026-10-23 05:36 UTC, at a relative speed of 14.63 km/s. Final forecast, made 20 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
SBSS (USA 216)Payload
NORAD 37168
CountryUS
Launched2010-09-26
OrbitLEO · 458 × 570 km
COSPAR2010-048A
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →
OBJECT KPayload
NORAD 49404
CountryJPN
Launched2021-11-09
OrbitLEO · 483 × 510 km
COSPAR2021-102K
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →

Where This Happens

Altitude context
DEBRIS BELT 700–1000 KM2006001,0001,5002,000 kmTHIS PASS · 477 KMISS 420Starlink 550

At 477 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 · SBSS (USA 216) ⟷ OBJECT K
2026-10-23 05:36668 m Final forecast14.63 km/s477 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 Nothing is overwritten: a withdrawn forecast keeps its figure, with the newer check beside it, and the best estimate after the pass is a row of its own.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
22 Oct 22:16 UTC668 m Forecast23 Oct 05:36 UTC22 Oct 17:01 UTCRe-check
22 Oct 21:42 UTC519 m Forecast23 Oct 05:36 UTC22 Oct 05:53 UTCRe-check
22 Oct 21:24 UTC2.71 km Forecast23 Oct 05:36 UTC22 Oct 05:53 UTCScreen

These Objects Elsewhere

Other screened approaches · 7 days
2.67 km10-24 05:56 UTC
RASSVET-3 31OBJECT K
4.71 km10-22 20:49 UTC
RASSVET-3 20OBJECT K
6.13 km10-24 21:41 UTC
SBSS (USA 216)OBJECT C

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 — “SBSS (USA 216) ⟷ OBJECT K: 668 m predicted close approach”, https://orbitalradar.com/conjunction/37168-49404 (accessed 2026-10-24).