SPACEWAY 1

SPACEWAY 1 is an active satellite operated by United States, launched on 2005-04-26 from Sea Launch (ocean platform). With over 21 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Geostationary Orbit (GEO) at altitudes between 36,276 km and 36,312 km with an inclination of 6.7°. It travels at approximately 11,004 km/h (3.06 km/s), completing one full orbit every 24.4 hours — that’s roughly 0.98 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 SPACEWAY 1 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

SPACEWAY 1 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 6.7°, 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 SPACEWAY 1’s average altitude, there are currently 52 active payloads and 13 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. United States operates approximately 12,360 active satellites in total, of which 17 share a similar altitude band with SPACEWAY 1.