USA 286

USA 286 is an active satellite operated by Air Force Research Laboratory (United States), launched on 2018-04-14 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. It orbits in Geostationary Orbit (GEO) at altitudes between 35,231 km and 35,322 km with an inclination of 7.1°. It travels at approximately 11,137 km/h (3.09 km/s), completing one full orbit every 23 hours 30 minutes — that’s roughly 1.02 orbits per day. At geostationary altitude, there is no meaningful atmospheric drag — this object will remain in orbit indefinitely unless actively deorbited. Orbital Radar tracks USA 286 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

USA 286 occupies geostationary orbit at approximately 35,786 km above the equator, where its orbital period matches the Earth’s 24-hour rotation. From the ground, it appears to hover over a fixed point — ideal for broadcast television, weather monitoring and wideband communications. With an inclination of 7.1°, it traces a small figure-of-eight pattern relative to the equator rather than remaining perfectly stationary, which can indicate aging stationkeeping fuel or a deliberate inclined-orbit strategy. Within ±50 km of USA 286’s average altitude, there are currently 3 active payloads and 12 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. United States operates approximately 12,339 active satellites in total, of which 2 share a similar altitude band with USA 286.