3CAT-5/A (TYVAK-0161)

3CAT-5/A (TYVAK-0161) is an active satellite operated by Copernicus Land and Marine Environment services (Spain), launched on 2020-09-03 from Guiana Space Centre, Kourou. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 426 km and 430 km with an inclination of 97.2°. It travels at approximately 27,564 km/h (7.66 km/s), completing one full orbit every 93 minutes — that’s roughly 15.46 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. Its near-circular orbit (eccentricity close to zero) means it maintains a very consistent altitude throughout each revolution. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~1–3 years. Orbital Radar tracks 3CAT-5/A (TYVAK-0161) in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

3CAT-5/A (TYVAK-0161) orbits at an average altitude of 428 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 3CAT-5/A (TYVAK-0161)’s average altitude, there are currently 4,316 active payloads and 141 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1008, STARLINK-1012, STARLINK-1017. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 24.8% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 97.2°, 3CAT-5/A (TYVAK-0161) passes over latitudes between 97.2°N and 97.2°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. Spain operates approximately 53 active satellites in total, of which 12 share a similar altitude band with 3CAT-5/A (TYVAK-0161).