JIELONG 3 DEB

JIELONG 3 DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to China, launched on 2025-01-13 from Yellow Sea launch area (Haiyang), China on the Weili Kongjian 01 zu launch. As a relatively recent addition to the catalogue, its orbital elements are well-characterised. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 632 km and 646 km with an inclination of 55.0°. It travels at approximately 27,146 km/h (7.54 km/s), completing one full orbit every 98 minutes — that’s roughly 14.77 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~10–25 years. As orbital debris, JIELONG 3 DEB poses a potential collision risk to operational satellites in nearby orbits and is continuously monitored by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network and other tracking systems.

JIELONG 3 DEB orbits at an average altitude of 639 km in the mid-LEO band, where atmospheric drag is minimal but radiation exposure remains manageable. Objects at this altitude persist for decades to centuries, making debris mitigation critical. This regime is popular for remote sensing constellations and scientific instruments that need stable, long-duration orbits. Within ±50 km of JIELONG 3 DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 965 active payloads and 1,013 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include AQUA, ONEWEB-0050. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 5.2% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 55.0°, JIELONG 3 DEB passes over latitudes between 55.0°N and 55.0°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. China operates approximately 1,288 active satellites in total, of which 146 share a similar altitude band with JIELONG 3 DEB.