CZ-4C R/B

CZ-4C R/B is a spent rocket body associated with China, launched on 2009-12-15 from Taiyuan, China on the yaogan weixing bahao 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 970 km and 1,203 km with an inclination of 100.5°. It travels at approximately 26,319 km/h (7.31 km/s), completing one full orbit every 107 minutes — that’s roughly 13.46 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~500–1,000 years. Spent rocket bodies like CZ-4C 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.

CZ-4C R/B orbits at an average altitude of 1,087 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 CZ-4C R/B’s average altitude, there are currently 182 active payloads and 401 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include ONEWEB-0041. With an inclination of 100.5°, CZ-4C R/B passes over latitudes between 100.5°N and 100.5°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. China operates approximately 1,221 active satellites in total, of which 160 share a similar altitude band with CZ-4C R/B.