COSMOS 2538

COSMOS 2538 is an active satellite operated by Ministry of Defense (Russia (CIS)), launched on 2019-07-10 from PKMTR. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 474 km and 533 km with an inclination of 97.6°. It travels at approximately 27,413 km/h (7.61 km/s), completing one full orbit every 95 minutes — that’s roughly 15.21 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 ~3–10 years. Orbital Radar tracks COSMOS 2538 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

COSMOS 2538 orbits at an average altitude of 504 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 COSMOS 2538’s average altitude, there are currently 9,583 active payloads and 251 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 55% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 97.6°, COSMOS 2538 passes over latitudes between 97.6°N and 97.6°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. Russia (CIS) operates approximately 1,286 active satellites in total, of which 60 share a similar altitude band with COSMOS 2538.