CZ-4C DEB

CZ-4C DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to China, launched on 2009-12-15 from Taiyuan, China on the yaogan weixing bahao launch. After 17 years in orbit, it continues to be tracked by global surveillance networks. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 1,073 km and 1,274 km with an inclination of 100.3°. It travels at approximately 26,167 km/h (7.27 km/s), completing one full orbit every 109 minutes — that’s roughly 13.23 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~500–1,000 years. As orbital debris, CZ-4C 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.

CZ-4C DEB orbits at an average altitude of 1,174 km in the upper LEO band, where atmospheric drag is negligible and objects can persist for centuries to millennia. This altitude is used by broadband constellations like OneWeb and by scientific missions requiring stable orbits far from the densest debris bands. Within ±50 km of CZ-4C DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 842 active payloads and 253 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ONEWEB-0012, ONEWEB-0010, ONEWEB-0008. With an inclination of 100.3°, CZ-4C DEB passes over latitudes between 100.3°N and 100.3°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. China operates approximately 1,218 active satellites in total, of which 174 share a similar altitude band with CZ-4C DEB.