STRELA 3

STRELA 3 is an active satellite operated by Russia (CIS), launched on 2010-09-08 from PKMTR. After 16 years in orbit, it continues to be tracked by global surveillance networks. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 1,496 km and 1,510 km with an inclination of 82.5°. It travels at approximately 25,614 km/h (7.11 km/s), completing one full orbit every 116 minutes — that’s roughly 12.41 orbits per day. Its near-circular orbit (eccentricity close to zero) means it maintains a very consistent altitude throughout each revolution. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is thousands of years. Orbital Radar tracks STRELA 3 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

STRELA 3 orbits at an average altitude of 1,503 km in the uppermost reaches of Low Earth Orbit. At this altitude, orbital decay is effectively zero without active deorbiting, and coverage footprints are significantly larger than lower LEO, though at the cost of higher latency. Within ±50 km of STRELA 3’s average altitude, there are currently 231 active payloads and 258 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. With an inclination of 82.5°, STRELA 3 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 1,286 active satellites in total, of which 221 share a similar altitude band with STRELA 3.