COSMOS 374 DEB

COSMOS 374 DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to Russia (CIS), launched on 1970-10-23 from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on the I2P launch. After more than 56 years in orbit, it is one of the longest-surviving objects in the space catalogue. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 503 km and 1,724 km with an inclination of 63.1°. It travels at approximately 26,272 km/h (7.30 km/s), completing one full orbit every 108 minutes — that’s roughly 13.39 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~500–1,000 years. As orbital debris, COSMOS 374 DEB poses a potential collision risk to operational satellites in nearby orbits and is continuously monitored by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network and other tracking systems.

COSMOS 374 DEB orbits at an average altitude of 1,114 km in the upper LEO band, where atmospheric drag is negligible and objects can persist for centuries to millennia. This altitude is used by broadband constellations like OneWeb and by scientific missions requiring stable orbits far from the densest debris bands. Within ±50 km of COSMOS 374 DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 410 active payloads and 476 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ONEWEB-0041, ONEWEB-0250. With an inclination of 63.1°, COSMOS 374 DEB passes over latitudes between 63.1°N and 63.1°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. Russia (CIS) operates approximately 1,535 active satellites in total.