CERTIFICATE OF RE-ENTRYOrbital Register™ · by Orbital Radar™
Entry no.
2002-0278
CELESTIS 01/PEGASUS R/B
CELESTIS 01/PEGASUS R/B (NORAD 24780) re-entered Earth’s atmosphere on 21 May 2002, after 5 years, 1 month in orbit.
Official date
NORAD number
24780
International designator
1997-018B
Object type
Rocket body
Country
United States
Launched
21 Apr 1997Air launch (Canary Islands)
Re-entered (UTC)
21 May 2002UTC calendar dayAlso recorded as 20 May 2002
Time in orbit
5 years, 1 month1,856 days
How it ended
Re-entered (natural decay)
Latitude range
29.1°N to 29.1°SFinal inclination 150.9°
Mass
202 kg
Where it came down
Latitude band its orbit allowedExact position not recorded
No position was recorded for this re-entry. Its final orbit, inclined at 150.9°, allowed a re-entry anywhere between 29.1°N and 29.1°S.
Life in orbit
5 years, 1 monthCELESTIS 01/PEGASUS R/B’s lowest and highest points above Earth, week by week, from its tracking history.
Also ended on 21 May 2002
2 entriesFrom the same launch
1997-018
Entered in the Orbital Register™, founding volume, September 2026.
Record version 1 · No corrections · orbitalradar.com/register/2002-0278
© 2026 Orbital Radar. Cite this entry by its number; the register itself may not be copied.
Record version 1 · No corrections · orbitalradar.com/register/2002-0278
© 2026 Orbital Radar. Cite this entry by its number; the register itself may not be copied.