THOR ABLESTAR DEB

THOR ABLESTAR DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to United States, launched on 1961-06-29 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, United States. After more than 65 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 892 km and 1,036 km with an inclination of 67.1°. It travels at approximately 26,538 km/h (7.37 km/s), completing one full orbit every 104 minutes — that’s roughly 13.80 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~100–500 years. As orbital debris, THOR ABLESTAR 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.

THOR ABLESTAR DEB orbits at an average altitude of 964 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 THOR ABLESTAR DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 440 active payloads and 1,250 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. With an inclination of 67.1°, THOR ABLESTAR DEB passes over latitudes between 67.1°N and 67.1°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. United States operates approximately 13,376 active satellites in total, of which 154 share a similar altitude band with THOR ABLESTAR DEB.