DNEPR 1 R/B

DNEPR 1 R/B is a spent rocket body associated with Russia (CIS), launched on 2000-09-26 from Baikonur, Kazakhstan on the Dnepr Rideshare 1 launch. With over 26 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 579 km and 1,334 km with an inclination of 64.6°. It travels at approximately 26,552 km/h (7.38 km/s), completing one full orbit every 104 minutes — that’s roughly 13.82 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~100–500 years. Spent rocket bodies like DNEPR 1 R/B are among the largest pieces of uncontrolled space debris and are priority targets for collision avoidance manoeuvres and future active debris removal efforts.

DNEPR 1 R/B orbits at an average altitude of 957 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 DNEPR 1 R/B’s average altitude, there are currently 325 active payloads and 1,086 tracked debris or rocket body fragments. With an inclination of 64.6°, DNEPR 1 R/B passes over latitudes between 64.6°N and 64.6°S, covering most populated land masses in both hemispheres. This mid-inclination band balances global coverage with efficient launch energy requirements. Russia (CIS) operates approximately 1,286 active satellites in total, of which 164 share a similar altitude band with DNEPR 1 R/B.