NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168)
NORAD 27704
Payload
MEO
2003-010A
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🛰️ Orbital Parameters
Perigee
20696 km
Apogee
20721 km
Inclination
54.9°
Period
739.4 min
Mean Motion
1.94743026 rev/day
TLE Epoch
2026-03-17 17:00:00 UTC
📐 Computed Orbital Characteristics
Avg. Altitude20,709 km
Orbital Velocity13,812 km/h
Velocity3.84 km/s
Orbital Period12 hours 19 minutes
Orbits / Day1.95
Eccentricity0.0005
Semi-Major Axis27,080 km
Est. Orbital LifetimeEffectively permanent — above atmospheric drag
🚀 Launch & Identity
Country / Operator
🇺🇸 United States
Launch Date
2003-03-31
Launch Site
Cape Canaveral, Florida
Int'l Designator
2003-010A
Object Type
Payload
RCS Size
Large (>1 m²)
📖 About This Object
NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) is an active satellite operated by United States, launched on 2003-03-31 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. With over 23 years in orbit, it has far exceeded many satellites’ design lifetimes. It orbits in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) at altitudes between 20,696 km and 20,721 km with an inclination of 54.9°. It travels at approximately 13,812 km/h (3.84 km/s), completing one full orbit every 12 hours 19 minutes — that’s roughly 1.95 orbits per day. Orbital Radar tracks NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.
🌍 Orbit Context
NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) operates in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), the region between LEO and GEO spanning roughly 2,000 to 35,786 km altitude. MEO is home to navigation constellations (GPS at ~20,200 km, Galileo at ~23,222 km, GLONASS at ~19,130 km) and some communications systems. The higher altitude gives each satellite a much larger ground footprint than LEO, meaning fewer satellites are needed for global coverage, but signal latency is higher and radiation exposure — particularly from the Van Allen belts — is a significant design challenge.
🔗 GPS Navigation Constellation
This satellite is part of the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS), operated by the U.S. Space Force. GPS provides positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) services to billions of users worldwide. The constellation maintains at least 24 operational satellites across six orbital planes at approximately 20,200 km altitude (MEO), with an orbital period of about 11 hours 58 minutes. Current-generation satellites include GPS III and GPS IIIF, which offer improved accuracy, anti-jamming capabilities and the new L5 civil signal.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) orbits in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) at altitudes between 20,696 km (perigee) and 20,721 km (apogee), with an average altitude of approximately 20,709 km. It completes one orbit every 12 hours 19 minutes, travelling at approximately 13,812 km/h (8,582 mph).
NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) is operated by United States. It is catalogued by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network under NORAD ID 27704. You can track NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) in real time on Orbital Radar’s live tracker.
NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) was launched on 2003-03-31 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, one of the busiest launch facilities in the world, operated by NASA and the U.S. Space Force on Florida’s Atlantic coast.
Yes — Orbital Radar tracks NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) (NORAD ID 27704) using the latest TLE (two-line element set) data from Space-Track and CelesTrak. Open the live tracker to see its current position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated in real time.
NAVSTAR 52 (USA 168) travels at approximately 13,812 km/h (8,582 mph) — roughly 3.84 km/s. It completes 1.95 orbits per day, meaning the crew or instruments aboard (if any) would experience approximately 4 sunrises and sunsets every 24 hours.