SL-14 DEB

SL-14 DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to Russia (CIS), launched on 1987-08-18 from PKMTR. With over 39 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 721 km and 778 km with an inclination of 82.5°. It travels at approximately 26,935 km/h (7.48 km/s), completing one full orbit every 100 minutes — that’s roughly 14.43 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~25–100 years. As orbital debris, SL-14 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.

SL-14 DEB orbits at an average altitude of 750 km in the mid-LEO band, where atmospheric drag is minimal but radiation exposure remains manageable. Objects at this altitude persist for decades to centuries, making debris mitigation critical. This regime is popular for remote sensing constellations and scientific instruments that need stable, long-duration orbits. Within ±50 km of SL-14 DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 356 active payloads and 1,952 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include LANDSAT 9. With an inclination of 82.5°, SL-14 DEB passes over latitudes between 82.5°N and 82.5°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 46 share a similar altitude band with SL-14 DEB.