THOR ABLESTAR R/B

THOR ABLESTAR R/B is a spent rocket body associated with United States, launched on 1961-06-29 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, United States. After more than 65 years in orbit, it is one of the longest-surviving objects in the space catalogue. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 822 km and 947 km with an inclination of 66.8°. It travels at approximately 26,683 km/h (7.41 km/s), completing one full orbit every 103 minutes — that’s roughly 14.03 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~100–500 years. Spent rocket bodies like THOR ABLESTAR R/B are among the largest pieces of uncontrolled space debris and are priority targets for collision avoidance manoeuvres and future active debris removal efforts.

THOR ABLESTAR R/B orbits at an average altitude of 885 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 THOR ABLESTAR R/B’s average altitude, there are currently 228 active payloads and 1,804 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. With an inclination of 66.8°, THOR ABLESTAR R/B passes over latitudes between 66.8°N and 66.8°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. United States operates approximately 13,206 active satellites in total, of which 70 share a similar altitude band with THOR ABLESTAR R/B.