OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT)

OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT) is an active satellite operated by USAF SSD / AEC (United States), launched on 1965-04-03 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, United States on the SNAP-10A FS-4 launch. After more than 61 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 1,272 km and 1,317 km with an inclination of 90.3°. It travels at approximately 25,960 km/h (7.21 km/s), completing one full orbit every 111 minutes — that’s roughly 12.92 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is thousands of years. Orbital Radar tracks OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT) in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT) orbits at an average altitude of 1,295 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 OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT)’s average altitude, there are currently 21 active payloads and 402 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. This is a relatively sparse altitude band, containing less than 1% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 90.3°, OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT) passes over latitudes between 90.3°N and 90.3°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. United States operates approximately 13,279 active satellites in total, of which 9 share a similar altitude band with OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT).