COSMOS 994

COSMOS 994 is an active satellite operated by Russia (CIS), launched on 1978-03-15 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 971 km and 1,003 km with an inclination of 82.9°. It travels at approximately 26,497 km/h (7.36 km/s), completing one full orbit every 105 minutes — that’s roughly 13.73 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~100–500 years. Orbital Radar tracks COSMOS 994 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

COSMOS 994 orbits at an average altitude of 987 km in the upper LEO band, where atmospheric drag is negligible and objects can persist for centuries to millennia. This altitude is used by broadband constellations like OneWeb and by scientific missions requiring stable orbits far from the densest debris bands. Within ±50 km of COSMOS 994’s average altitude, there are currently 281 active payloads and 917 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. With an inclination of 82.9°, COSMOS 994 passes over latitudes between 82.9°N and 82.9°S, providing near-global coverage including the polar regions. Polar and near-polar orbits are used for reconnaissance, weather monitoring and Earth-observation missions that need to image every part of the planet. Russia (CIS) operates approximately 1,286 active satellites in total, of which 156 share a similar altitude band with COSMOS 994.