GNOMES-4

GNOMES-4 is an active satellite operated by PLANQ (United States), launched on 2023-12-01 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, United States on the Korea 425 launch. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 555 km and 571 km with an inclination of 97.5°. It travels at approximately 27,295 km/h (7.58 km/s), completing one full orbit every 96 minutes — that’s roughly 15.01 orbits per day. Its near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit means it passes over any given point on Earth at approximately the same local solar time, ideal for consistent Earth observation lighting conditions. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~3–10 years. Orbital Radar tracks GNOMES-4 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

GNOMES-4 orbits at an average altitude of 563 km in a sun-synchronous orbit (SSO), a specialised subset of LEO where the orbital plane precesses to maintain a constant angle relative to the Sun. This provides consistent lighting conditions on every pass — essential for Earth observation, weather monitoring and environmental science. Within ±50 km of GNOMES-4’s average altitude, there are currently 1,487 active payloads and 496 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ONEWEB-0050, STARLINK-1522, STARLINK-2112. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 8% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 97.5°, GNOMES-4 passes over latitudes between 97.5°N and 97.5°S, providing near-global coverage including the polar regions. Polar and near-polar orbits are used for reconnaissance, weather monitoring and Earth-observation missions that need to image every part of the planet. United States operates approximately 13,204 active satellites in total, of which 944 share a similar altitude band with GNOMES-4.