IMAGE

IMAGE is an active satellite operated by United States, launched on 2000-03-25 from Vandenberg SFB, California. With over 26 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO) at altitudes between 1,264 km and 45,602 km with an inclination of 94.2°. It travels at approximately 13,165 km/h (3.66 km/s), completing one full orbit every 14 hours 14 minutes — that’s roughly 1.69 orbits per day. Its orbital eccentricity of 0.7438 gives it a noticeably elliptical path, with significant altitude variation between perigee and apogee. Orbital Radar tracks IMAGE in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

IMAGE follows a Highly Elliptical Orbit, sweeping between 1,264 km (perigee) and 45,602 km (apogee). It spends most of its 14 hours 14 minutes orbital period near apogee, effectively loitering over a region of interest before rapidly sweeping through perigee — a profile used for high-latitude communications (Molniya orbits), early-warning systems and magnetospheric science. Within ±50 km of IMAGE’s average altitude, there are currently 2 active payloads and 6 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 94.2°, IMAGE passes over latitudes between 94.2°N and 94.2°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 12,339 active satellites in total.