GUANGCHUAN 02

GUANGCHUAN 02 is an active satellite operated by China, launched on 2024-11-27 from Jiuquan, China. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 517 km and 527 km with an inclination of 49.9°. It travels at approximately 27,376 km/h (7.60 km/s), completing one full orbit every 95 minutes — that’s roughly 15.15 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 ~3–10 years. Orbital Radar tracks GUANGCHUAN 02 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

GUANGCHUAN 02 orbits at an average altitude of 522 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 GUANGCHUAN 02’s average altitude, there are currently 7,676 active payloads and 281 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1039, STARLINK-1184, STARLINK-1231. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 44% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 49.9°, GUANGCHUAN 02 passes over latitudes between 49.9°N and 49.9°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 1,218 active satellites in total, of which 215 share a similar altitude band with GUANGCHUAN 02.