RESURS O1 DEB

RESURS O1 DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to Russia (CIS), launched on 1994-11-04 from Baikonur, Kazakhstan on the Resurs-O1 No. 3L launch. With over 32 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 610 km and 777 km with an inclination of 98.0°. It travels at approximately 27,041 km/h (7.51 km/s), completing one full orbit every 99 minutes — that’s roughly 14.60 orbits per day. Its near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit means it passes over any given point on Earth at approximately the same local solar time, ideal for consistent Earth observation lighting conditions. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~10–25 years. As orbital debris, RESURS O1 DEB poses a potential collision risk to operational satellites in nearby orbits and is continuously monitored by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network and other tracking systems.

RESURS O1 DEB orbits at an average altitude of 694 km in a sun-synchronous orbit (SSO), a specialised subset of LEO where the orbital plane precesses to maintain a constant angle relative to the Sun. This provides consistent lighting conditions on every pass — essential for Earth observation, weather monitoring and environmental science. Within ±50 km of RESURS O1 DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 281 active payloads and 1,366 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include TERRA, AQUA, LANDSAT 9. With an inclination of 98.0°, RESURS O1 DEB passes over latitudes between 98.0°N and 98.0°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 1,285 active satellites in total, of which 10 share a similar altitude band with RESURS O1 DEB.