Home›Maneuver Tracker›Close Approaches›YAOGAN 24 ⟷ AAC-AIS-SAT2
HighProximity
ChinaYAOGAN 24NORAD 40310 · launched Nov 2014Military payload
3.46kmPredicted miss distance
United KingdomAAC-AIS-SAT2NORAD 56996 · launched Jun 2023Payload
Final forecastFinal forecast, made 15 min before the pass.
Closest approach21 Oct 202622:59 UTC
Drift speed586 m/s2,111 km/h, seen from AAC-AIS-SAT2
Altitude645 kmlow Earth orbit
Last confirmed21 Oct22:44 UTC · final forecast
Track YAOGAN 24Track AAC-AIS-SAT2All approaches
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CN YAOGAN 24 and UK AAC-AIS-SAT2 were predicted to reach a closest approach of 3.46 km at 2026-10-21 22:59 UTC, drifting past at about 586 m/s (2,111 km/h) as seen from AAC-AIS-SAT2. Final forecast, made 15 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
YAOGAN 24Payload
NORAD 40310
CountryPRC
Launched2014-11-20
OrbitLEO · 632 × 651 km
COSPAR2014-072A
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →
AAC-AIS-SAT2Payload
NORAD 56996
CountryUK
Launched2023-06-12
OrbitLEO · 570 × 650 km
COSPAR2023-084BY
Maneuver capableUnknown
Profile →Globe →

Where This Happens

Altitude context
DEBRIS BELT 700–1000 KM2006001,0001,5002,000 kmTHIS PASS · 645 KMISS 420Starlink 550

At 645 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 · YAOGAN 24 ⟷ AAC-AIS-SAT2
2026-10-21 22:593.46 km Final forecast0.59 km/s645 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 Nothing is overwritten: a withdrawn forecast keeps its figure, with the newer check beside it, and the best estimate after the pass is a row of its own.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
21 Oct 13:30 UTC3.46 km Forecast21 Oct 22:59 UTC21 Oct 07:07 UTCRe-check
21 Oct 09:46 UTC3.40 km Forecast21 Oct 22:59 UTC21 Oct 05:29 UTCRe-check
21 Oct 03:52 UTC3.43 km Forecast21 Oct 22:59 UTC20 Oct 22:59 UTCRe-check
20 Oct 23:12 UTC3.14 km Forecast21 Oct 22:59 UTC20 Oct 06:59 UTCScreen

These Objects Elsewhere

Other screened approaches · 7 days
1.80 km10-21 12:30 UTC
YAOGAN 24CZ-4C DEB
2.01 km10-22 10:18 UTC
YAOGAN 24SL-8 DEB *
5.00 km10-16 10:22 UTC
YAOGAN 24NOAA 16 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 — “YAOGAN 24 ⟷ AAC-AIS-SAT2: 3.46 km predicted close approach”, https://orbitalradar.com/conjunction/40310-56996 (accessed 2026-10-22).