YUNYAO-1 18

YUNYAO-1 18 is an active satellite operated by China, launched on 2024-01-11 from YSLA. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 492 km and 499 km with an inclination of 50.0°. It travels at approximately 27,429 km/h (7.62 km/s), completing one full orbit every 95 minutes — that’s roughly 15.23 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 YUNYAO-1 18 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

YUNYAO-1 18 orbits at an average altitude of 496 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 YUNYAO-1 18’s average altitude, there are currently 9,155 active payloads and 240 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1017, STARLINK-1039, STARLINK-1047. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 52.6% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 50.0°, YUNYAO-1 18 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 190 share a similar altitude band with YUNYAO-1 18.