TIANQI-12

TIANQI-12 is an active satellite operated by Guodian Gaoke (China), launched on 2021-05-06 from Xichang, China. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 527 km and 533 km with an inclination of 35.0°. It travels at approximately 27,360 km/h (7.60 km/s), completing one full orbit every 95 minutes — that’s roughly 15.12 orbits per day. 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 ~3–10 years. Orbital Radar tracks TIANQI-12 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

TIANQI-12 orbits at an average altitude of 530 km in the core of Low Earth Orbit, the most heavily utilised altitude band. The balance of moderate drag (limiting debris accumulation) and short signal path (enabling low-latency links and high-resolution imaging) makes this regime the default for most commercial and government missions. Within ±50 km of TIANQI-12’s average altitude, there are currently 6,771 active payloads and 292 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1184, STARLINK-1231, STARLINK-1276. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 38.9% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 35.0°, TIANQI-12 passes over latitudes between 35.0°N and 35.0°S, covering the tropical and temperate zones where most of the world’s population resides. Low-to-mid inclination orbits are efficient to reach from equatorial and mid-latitude launch sites. China operates approximately 1,219 active satellites in total, of which 212 share a similar altitude band with TIANQI-12.