YAOGAN 25C DEB

YAOGAN 25C DEB is a tracked piece of space debris attributed to China, launched on 2014-12-10 from Jiuquan, China on the YG-25 launch. After 12 years in orbit, it continues to be tracked by global surveillance networks. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 768 km and 1,271 km with an inclination of 63.4°. It travels at approximately 26,438 km/h (7.34 km/s), completing one full orbit every 106 minutes — that’s roughly 13.64 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~500–1,000 years. As orbital debris, YAOGAN 25C 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.

YAOGAN 25C DEB orbits at an average altitude of 1,020 km in the upper LEO band, where atmospheric drag is negligible and objects can persist for centuries to millennia. This altitude is used by broadband constellations like OneWeb and by scientific missions requiring stable orbits far from the densest debris bands. Within ±50 km of YAOGAN 25C DEB’s average altitude, there are currently 338 active payloads and 739 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. With an inclination of 63.4°, YAOGAN 25C DEB passes over latitudes between 63.4°N and 63.4°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. China operates approximately 1,245 active satellites in total, of which 174 share a similar altitude band with YAOGAN 25C DEB.