ERS 6

ERS 6 is an active satellite operated by USAF SSD (United States), launched on 1963-05-09 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, United States on the Midas ETS-III F2 launch. After more than 63 years in orbit, it is one of the longest-surviving objects in the space catalogue. It orbits in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) at altitudes between 3,636 km and 3,652 km with an inclination of 87.4°. It travels at approximately 22,712 km/h (6.31 km/s), completing one full orbit every 2 hours 46 minutes — that’s roughly 8.65 orbits per day. Orbital Radar tracks ERS 6 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

ERS 6 orbits at an average altitude of 3,644 km in Medium Earth Orbit, the region between LEO and GEO (2,000–35,786 km). MEO’s higher altitude gives each satellite a much larger ground footprint than LEO, meaning fewer spacecraft are needed for global coverage — but signal latency is higher and radiation from the Van Allen belts is a significant design constraint. Within ±50 km of ERS 6’s average altitude, there are currently 9 active payloads and 24 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. This is a relatively sparse altitude band, containing less than 1% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 87.4°, ERS 6 passes over latitudes between 87.4°N and 87.4°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 13,279 active satellites in total, of which 9 share a similar altitude band with ERS 6.