CZ-2C R/B

CZ-2C R/B is a spent rocket body associated with China, launched on 2021-06-18 from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, China on the YG-30-09 launch. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 555 km and 649 km with an inclination of 35.1°. It travels at approximately 27,218 km/h (7.56 km/s), completing one full orbit every 97 minutes — that’s roughly 14.89 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~10–25 years. Spent rocket bodies like CZ-2C 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.

CZ-2C R/B orbits at an average altitude of 602 km in the mid-LEO band, where atmospheric drag is minimal but radiation exposure remains manageable. Objects at this altitude persist for decades to centuries, making debris mitigation critical. This regime is popular for remote sensing constellations and scientific instruments that need stable, long-duration orbits. Within ±50 km of CZ-2C R/B’s average altitude, there are currently 1,457 active payloads and 721 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ONEWEB-0050, STARLINK-3005, STARLINK-3090. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 7.8% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 35.1°, CZ-2C R/B passes over latitudes between 35.1°N and 35.1°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 1,320 active satellites in total, of which 171 share a similar altitude band with CZ-2C R/B.