GOES 13

GOES 13 is an active satellite operated by US Air Force (United States), launched on 2006-05-24 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. With over 20 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Geostationary Orbit (GEO) at altitudes between 35,950 km and 36,466 km with an inclination of 4.5°. It travels at approximately 11,015 km/h (3.06 km/s), completing one full orbit every 24.3 hours — that’s roughly 0.99 orbits per day. It is part of the Goes constellation group. At geostationary altitude, there is no meaningful atmospheric drag — this object will remain in orbit indefinitely unless actively deorbited. Orbital Radar tracks GOES 13 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

GOES 13 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 4.5°, 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 GOES 13’s average altitude, there are currently 96 active payloads and 17 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. United States operates approximately 12,360 active satellites in total, of which 32 share a similar altitude band with GOES 13.