ETS 6

ETS 6 is an active satellite operated by Japan, launched on 1994-08-28 from TNSTA. With over 32 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) at altitudes between 8,447 km and 38,794 km with an inclination of 12.5°. It travels at approximately 13,124 km/h (3.65 km/s), completing one full orbit every 14 hours 22 minutes — that’s roughly 1.67 orbits per day. Its orbital eccentricity of 0.5059 gives it a noticeably elliptical path, with significant altitude variation between perigee and apogee. Orbital Radar tracks ETS 6 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

ETS 6 orbits at an average altitude of 23,621 km in Medium Earth Orbit, the region between LEO and GEO (2,000–35,786 km). MEO’s higher altitude gives each satellite a much larger ground footprint than LEO, meaning fewer spacecraft are needed for global coverage — but signal latency is higher and radiation from the Van Allen belts is a significant design constraint. Within ±50 km of ETS 6’s average altitude, there are currently 1 active payload and 3 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 12.5°, ETS 6 passes over latitudes between 12.5°N and 12.5°S, concentrating coverage over equatorial and near-equatorial regions. Low-inclination orbits maximise revisit rates over specific tropical zones. Japan operates approximately 189 active satellites in total.