XIGUANG-4 01

XIGUANG-4 01 is an active satellite operated by China, launched on 2026-10-21 from Yellow Sea launch area (Haiyang), China. As a relatively recent addition to the catalogue, its orbital elements are well-characterised. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 529 km and 548 km with an inclination of 39.0°. It travels at approximately 27,343 km/h (7.60 km/s), completing one full orbit every 95 minutes — that’s roughly 15.09 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~3–10 years. Orbital Radar tracks XIGUANG-4 01 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

XIGUANG-4 01 orbits at an average altitude of 539 km in the core of Low Earth Orbit, the most heavily utilised altitude band. The balance of moderate drag (limiting debris accumulation) and short signal path (enabling low-latency links and high-resolution imaging) makes this regime the default for most commercial and government missions. Within ±50 km of XIGUANG-4 01’s average altitude, there are currently 1,525 active payloads and 356 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1184, STARLINK-1276, STARLINK-1451. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 8.1% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 39.0°, XIGUANG-4 01 passes over latitudes between 39.0°N and 39.0°S, covering the tropical and temperate zones where most of the world’s population resides. Low-to-mid inclination orbits are efficient to reach from equatorial and mid-latitude launch sites. China operates approximately 1,341 active satellites in total, of which 200 share a similar altitude band with XIGUANG-4 01.