IRIDIUM 47 DEB

IRIDIUM 47 DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to United States, launched on 1997-12-20 from Vandenberg SFB, California on the Iridium MS-6 launch. With over 29 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 693 km and 866 km with an inclination of 86.3°. It travels at approximately 26,878 km/h (7.47 km/s), completing one full orbit every 100 minutes — that’s roughly 14.34 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~25–100 years. As orbital debris, IRIDIUM 47 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.

IRIDIUM 47 DEB orbits at an average altitude of 780 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 IRIDIUM 47 DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 410 active payloads and 2,164 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include NOAA 20, ONEWEB-0179, ONEWEB-0455. With an inclination of 86.3°, IRIDIUM 47 DEB passes over latitudes between 86.3°N and 86.3°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. United States operates approximately 12,358 active satellites in total, of which 154 share a similar altitude band with IRIDIUM 47 DEB.