OBJECT V

OBJECT V (NORAD ID 62396) is a space object catalogued under Unknown, launched on 2024-12-21 from Vandenberg SFB, California on the Bandwagon-2 launch. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 390 km and 402 km with an inclination of 45.0°. It travels at approximately 27,630 km/h (7.67 km/s), completing one full orbit every 92 minutes — that’s roughly 15.57 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 months to ~1 year. Orbital Radar tracks OBJECT V in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

OBJECT V orbits at an average altitude of 396 km in the lower reaches of Low Earth Orbit, where atmospheric drag is significant and orbital lifetimes are measured in months to a few years. This is the busiest corridor in space — home to crewed spacecraft, rapid-revisit imaging satellites and the densest part of the Starlink constellation. Within ±50 km of OBJECT V’s average altitude, there are currently 1,246 active payloads and 83 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1008, STARLINK-1012, STARLINK-1020. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 7% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 45.0°, OBJECT V passes over latitudes between 45.0°N and 45.0°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.