NANOSAT 1B

NANOSAT 1B is an active satellite operated by Instituto Nacional de Técnia Aeroespacial (INTA) (Spain), launched on 2009-07-29 from Baikonur, Kazakhstan on the Dnepr Rideshare 6 launch. After 17 years in orbit, it continues to be tracked by global surveillance networks. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 553 km and 623 km with an inclination of 98.1°. It travels at approximately 27,246 km/h (7.57 km/s), completing one full orbit every 96 minutes — that’s roughly 14.93 orbits per day. Its near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit means it passes over any given point on Earth at approximately the same local solar time, ideal for consistent Earth observation lighting conditions. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~3–10 years. Orbital Radar tracks NANOSAT 1B in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

NANOSAT 1B orbits at an average altitude of 588 km in a sun-synchronous orbit (SSO), a specialised subset of LEO where the orbital plane precesses to maintain a constant angle relative to the Sun. This provides consistent lighting conditions on every pass — essential for Earth observation, weather monitoring and environmental science. Within ±50 km of NANOSAT 1B’s average altitude, there are currently 2,997 active payloads and 594 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ONEWEB-0050, STARLINK-3005, STARLINK-3090. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 17.1% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 98.1°, NANOSAT 1B passes over latitudes between 98.1°N and 98.1°S, providing near-global coverage including the polar regions. Polar and near-polar orbits are used for reconnaissance, weather monitoring and Earth-observation missions that need to image every part of the planet. Spain operates approximately 53 active satellites in total, of which 11 share a similar altitude band with NANOSAT 1B.