FENGYUN 3G

FENGYUN 3G is an active satellite operated by China Meteorological Administration (China), launched on 2023-04-16 from Jiuquan, China. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 404 km and 414 km with an inclination of 50.0°. It travels at approximately 27,603 km/h (7.67 km/s), completing one full orbit every 93 minutes — that’s roughly 15.53 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 ~1–3 years. Orbital Radar tracks FENGYUN 3G in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

FENGYUN 3G orbits at an average altitude of 409 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 FENGYUN 3G’s average altitude, there are currently 1,098 active payloads and 101 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1008, STARLINK-1012, STARLINK-1020. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 6.3% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 50.0°, FENGYUN 3G passes over latitudes between 50.0°N and 50.0°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 50 share a similar altitude band with FENGYUN 3G.