COSMOS 980

COSMOS 980 is an active satellite operated by Russia (CIS), launched on 1978-01-10 from PKMTR. With over 48 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 1,463 km and 1,475 km with an inclination of 74.0°. It travels at approximately 25,669 km/h (7.13 km/s), completing one full orbit every 115 minutes — that’s roughly 12.49 orbits per day. Its near-circular orbit (eccentricity close to zero) means it maintains a very consistent altitude throughout each revolution. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is thousands of years. Orbital Radar tracks COSMOS 980 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

COSMOS 980 orbits at an average altitude of 1,469 km in the uppermost reaches of Low Earth Orbit. At this altitude, orbital decay is effectively zero without active deorbiting, and coverage footprints are significantly larger than lower LEO, though at the cost of higher latency. Within ±50 km of COSMOS 980’s average altitude, there are currently 318 active payloads and 247 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. With an inclination of 74.0°, COSMOS 980 passes over latitudes between 74.0°N and 74.0°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. Russia (CIS) operates approximately 1,286 active satellites in total, of which 311 share a similar altitude band with COSMOS 980.