COSMOS 2426 (GLONASS)

COSMOS 2426 (GLONASS) is an active satellite operated by Ministry of Defense (Russia (CIS)), launched on 2006-12-25 from Baikonur, Kazakhstan. With over 20 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) at altitudes between 19,085 km and 19,196 km with an inclination of 64.7°. It travels at approximately 14,230 km/h (3.95 km/s), completing one full orbit every 11 hours 16 minutes — that’s roughly 2.13 orbits per day. It is part of the Glo Ops constellation group. Orbital Radar tracks COSMOS 2426 (GLONASS) in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

COSMOS 2426 (GLONASS) orbits at an average altitude of 19,141 km in Medium Earth Orbit, the region between LEO and GEO (2,000–35,786 km). MEO’s higher altitude gives each satellite a much larger ground footprint than LEO, meaning fewer spacecraft are needed for global coverage — but signal latency is higher and radiation from the Van Allen belts is a significant design constraint. Within ±50 km of COSMOS 2426 (GLONASS)’s average altitude, there are currently 142 active payloads and 44 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include COSMOS 1414 (GLONASS), COSMOS 1490 (GLONASS), COSMOS 1492 (GLONASS). With an inclination of 64.7°, COSMOS 2426 (GLONASS) passes over latitudes between 64.7°N and 64.7°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. Russia (CIS) operates approximately 1,286 active satellites in total, of which 142 share a similar altitude band with COSMOS 2426 (GLONASS).