AEROCUBE 16A

AEROCUBE 16A is an active satellite operated by AERO (United States), launched on 2024-03-21 from Wallops Flight Facility / MARS, United States on the NROL-123 launch. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 425 km and 430 km with an inclination of 50.0°. It travels at approximately 27,565 km/h (7.66 km/s), completing one full orbit every 93 minutes — that’s roughly 15.46 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 428 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 6,497 active payloads and 122 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ISS (ZARYA), STARLINK-1017, STARLINK-1039. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 34.8% 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 13,204 active satellites in total, of which 6,248 share a similar altitude band with AEROCUBE 16A.