TIANQI 21

TIANQI 21 is an active satellite operated by China, launched on 2023-09-05 from YSLA. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 805 km and 825 km with an inclination of 50.0°. It travels at approximately 26,812 km/h (7.45 km/s), completing one full orbit every 101 minutes — that’s roughly 14.23 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~100–500 years. Orbital Radar tracks TIANQI 21 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

TIANQI 21 orbits at an average altitude of 815 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 TIANQI 21’s average altitude, there are currently 422 active payloads and 2,306 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include NOAA 20, ONEWEB-0179, ONEWEB-0455. With an inclination of 50.0°, TIANQI 21 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 118 share a similar altitude band with TIANQI 21.