ATLAS AGENA D R/B

ATLAS AGENA D R/B is a spent rocket body associated with United States, launched on 1970-06-19 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, United States on the RHYOLITE 1 launch. After more than 56 years in orbit, it is one of the longest-surviving objects in the space catalogue. It orbits in Geostationary Orbit (GEO) at altitudes between 35,610 km and 35,869 km with an inclination of 1.9°. It travels at approximately 11,076 km/h (3.08 km/s), completing one full orbit every ~24 hours (geosynchronous) — that’s roughly 1.00 orbits per day. At geostationary altitude, there is no meaningful atmospheric drag — this object will remain in orbit indefinitely unless actively deorbited. Spent rocket bodies like ATLAS AGENA D R/B are among the largest pieces of uncontrolled space debris and are priority targets for collision avoidance manoeuvres and future active debris removal efforts.

ATLAS AGENA D R/B 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 1.9°, 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 ATLAS AGENA D R/B’s average altitude, there are currently 661 active payloads and 41 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ASTRA 1N, GOES 16, TDRS 13. United States operates approximately 13,206 active satellites in total, of which 142 share a similar altitude band with ATLAS AGENA D R/B.