ATLAS CENTAUR 2 DEB

ATLAS CENTAUR 2 DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to United States, launched on 1963-11-27 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, United States on the AC-2 launch. After more than 63 years in orbit, it is one of the longest-surviving objects in the space catalogue. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 568 km and 901 km with an inclination of 29.9°. It travels at approximately 26,963 km/h (7.49 km/s), completing one full orbit every 99 minutes — that’s roughly 14.47 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~25–100 years. As orbital debris, ATLAS CENTAUR 2 DEB poses a potential collision risk to operational satellites in nearby orbits and is continuously monitored by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network and other tracking systems.

ATLAS CENTAUR 2 DEB orbits at an average altitude of 735 km in the mid-LEO band, where atmospheric drag is minimal but radiation exposure remains manageable. Objects at this altitude persist for decades to centuries, making debris mitigation critical. This regime is popular for remote sensing constellations and scientific instruments that need stable, long-duration orbits. Within ±50 km of ATLAS CENTAUR 2 DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 401 active payloads and 2,021 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include TERRA, AQUA, ONEWEB-0179. With an inclination of 29.9°, ATLAS CENTAUR 2 DEB passes over latitudes between 29.9°N and 29.9°S, covering the tropical and temperate zones where most of the world’s population resides. Low-to-mid inclination orbits are efficient to reach from equatorial and mid-latitude launch sites. United States operates approximately 13,199 active satellites in total, of which 168 share a similar altitude band with ATLAS CENTAUR 2 DEB.