SAUDISAT 5B

SAUDISAT 5B is an active satellite operated by Space Research Institute, King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (SAUD), launched on 2018-12-07 from Jiuquan, China. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 473 km and 489 km with an inclination of 97.3°. It travels at approximately 27,458 km/h (7.63 km/s), completing one full orbit every 94 minutes — that’s roughly 15.28 orbits per day. Its near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit means it passes over any given point on Earth at approximately the same local solar time, ideal for consistent Earth observation lighting conditions. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~1–3 years. Orbital Radar tracks SAUDISAT 5B in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

SAUDISAT 5B orbits at an average altitude of 481 km in a sun-synchronous orbit (SSO), a specialised subset of LEO where the orbital plane precesses to maintain a constant angle relative to the Sun. This provides consistent lighting conditions on every pass — essential for Earth observation, weather monitoring and environmental science. Within ±50 km of SAUDISAT 5B’s average altitude, there are currently 8,070 active payloads and 215 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1017, STARLINK-1039, STARLINK-1047. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 46.3% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 97.3°, SAUDISAT 5B passes over latitudes between 97.3°N and 97.3°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. SAUD operates approximately 15 active satellites in total, of which 2 share a similar altitude band with SAUDISAT 5B.