RADUGA 21

RADUGA 21 is an active satellite operated by Russia (CIS), launched on 1987-12-10 from Baikonur, Kazakhstan. With over 39 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Geostationary Orbit (GEO) at altitudes between 35,759 km and 35,766 km with an inclination of 11.3°. It travels at approximately 11,073 km/h (3.08 km/s), completing one full orbit every ~24 hours (geosynchronous) — that’s roughly 1.00 orbits per day. At geostationary altitude, there is no meaningful atmospheric drag — this object will remain in orbit indefinitely unless actively deorbited. Orbital Radar tracks RADUGA 21 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

RADUGA 21 occupies geostationary orbit at approximately 35,786 km above the equator, where its orbital period matches the Earth’s 24-hour rotation. From the ground, it appears to hover over a fixed point — ideal for broadcast television, weather monitoring and wideband communications. With an inclination of 11.3°, it traces a small figure-of-eight pattern relative to the equator rather than remaining perfectly stationary, which can indicate aging stationkeeping fuel or a deliberate inclined-orbit strategy. Within ±50 km of RADUGA 21’s average altitude, there are currently 694 active payloads and 53 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ASTRA 1N, GOES 16, TDRS 13. Russia (CIS) operates approximately 1,286 active satellites in total, of which 115 share a similar altitude band with RADUGA 21.