AEROCUBE 16A

AEROCUBE 16A is an active satellite operated by United States, launched on 2024-03-21 from Wallops Island, Virginia. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 433 km and 437 km with an inclination of 50.0°. It travels at approximately 27,550 km/h (7.65 km/s), completing one full orbit every 93 minutes — that’s roughly 15.44 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 AEROCUBE 16A in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

AEROCUBE 16A orbits at an average altitude of 435 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 AEROCUBE 16A’s average altitude, there are currently 7,611 active payloads and 143 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1008, STARLINK-1012, STARLINK-1017. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 43.7% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 50.0°, AEROCUBE 16A 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. United States operates approximately 12,339 active satellites in total, of which 7,336 share a similar altitude band with AEROCUBE 16A.