GLOBAL-17

GLOBAL-17 is an active satellite operated by BlackSky Global (United States), launched on 2021-12-09 from RLLC on the Global-16/Global-17 launch. It orbits in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 398 km and 420 km with an inclination of 42.0°. It travels at approximately 27,603 km/h (7.67 km/s), completing one full orbit every 93 minutes — that’s roughly 15.53 orbits per day. At its current altitude, the estimated orbital lifetime before atmospheric re-entry is ~1–3 years. Orbital Radar tracks GLOBAL-17 in real time using the latest two-line element set (TLE) data, providing live position, altitude, speed and orbital path updated continuously.

GLOBAL-17 orbits at an average altitude of 409 km in the core of Low Earth Orbit, the most heavily utilised altitude band. The balance of moderate drag (limiting debris accumulation) and short signal path (enabling low-latency links and high-resolution imaging) makes this regime the default for most commercial and government missions. Within ±50 km of GLOBAL-17’s average altitude, there are currently 1,091 active payloads and 107 tracked debris or rocket body fragments — notable neighbours include STARLINK-1008, STARLINK-1012, STARLINK-1020. This makes it one of the more crowded altitude bands, containing roughly 6.2% of all active satellites. With an inclination of 42.0°, GLOBAL-17 passes over latitudes between 42.0°N and 42.0°S, covering the tropical and temperate zones where most of the world’s population resides. Low-to-mid inclination orbits are efficient to reach from equatorial and mid-latitude launch sites. United States operates approximately 12,413 active satellites in total, of which 917 share a similar altitude band with GLOBAL-17.