OPS 7329

OPS 7329 is an active satellite operated by SAMSO (United States), launched on 1970-09-01 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, United States on the CANYON 3 launch. After more than 56 years in orbit, it is one of the longest-surviving objects in the space catalogue. It orbits in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) at altitudes between 31,535 km and 40,079 km with an inclination of 10.7°. It travels at approximately 11,067 km/h (3.07 km/s), completing one full orbit every ~24 hours (geosynchronous) — that’s roughly 1.00 orbits per day. Its orbital eccentricity of 0.1013 gives it a noticeably elliptical path, with significant altitude variation between perigee and apogee. At geostationary altitude, there is no meaningful atmospheric drag — this object will remain in orbit indefinitely unless actively deorbited. Orbital Radar tracks OPS 7329 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

OPS 7329 orbits at an average altitude of 35,807 km in Medium Earth Orbit, the region between LEO and GEO (2,000–35,786 km). MEO’s higher altitude gives each satellite a much larger ground footprint than LEO, meaning fewer spacecraft are needed for global coverage — but signal latency is higher and radiation from the Van Allen belts is a significant design constraint. Within ±50 km of OPS 7329’s average altitude, there are currently 739 active payloads and 67 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ASTRA 1N, GOES 16, TDRS 13. With an inclination of 10.7°, OPS 7329 passes over latitudes between 10.7°N and 10.7°S, concentrating coverage over equatorial and near-equatorial regions. Low-inclination orbits maximise revisit rates over specific tropical zones. United States operates approximately 13,279 active satellites in total, of which 154 share a similar altitude band with OPS 7329.