KORSAT-3

KORSAT-3 is an active satellite operated by South Korea, launched on 2025-04-22 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. As a relatively recent addition to the catalogue, its orbital elements are well-characterised. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 565 km and 576 km with an inclination of 45.4°. It travels at approximately 27,280 km/h (7.58 km/s), completing one full orbit every 96 minutes — that’s roughly 14.99 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 KORSAT-3 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

KORSAT-3 orbits at an average altitude of 571 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 KORSAT-3’s average altitude, there are currently 3,175 active payloads and 486 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1184, STARLINK-1276, ONEWEB-0050. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 18.2% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 45.4°, KORSAT-3 passes over latitudes between 45.4°N and 45.4°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. South Korea operates approximately 51 active satellites in total, of which 12 share a similar altitude band with KORSAT-3.