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SatelliteIndex

Debris

Space debris on orbit

Catalogued fragments and spent rocket bodies currently tracked, where they come from and how the population has evolved since 1957. Counts come from the SATCAT as normalised by SatelliteIndex.

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Disclaimer

Counts of catalogued objects only; no collision probabilities are computed or implied.

Totals

Non-operational objects on orbit

Debris

12,532

Catalogued fragments on orbit

Rocket bodies

2,427

Spent stages on orbit

Unknown type

619

Unclassified objects on orbit

Inactive payloads

3,054

Non-operational satellites on orbit

By country

Who the debris is attributed to

Full ranking →

Debris on orbit by country

SATCAT owner code → country
  • China4,220
  • United States3,958
  • Russia3,902
  • France352
  • India36
  • Japan36
  • Canada6
  • Germany1

Rocket bodies on orbit by country

  • Russia1,052
  • United States781
  • China284
  • France165
  • Japan53
  • India42
  • South Korea4
  • Iran3
  • Australia2
  • North Korea1
  • Italy1
  • United Kingdom1

Altitude

Where debris and rocket bodies orbit

Debris and rocket bodies by perigee altitudederived

50 km bins
Debris and rocket bodies on orbit by perigee altitude, 50 km bins (km)05001K1.5K2K503005508001050130015501800205023002400
  • Debris
  • Rocket bodies

x-axis = lower edge of each 50 km perigee bin (km). Objects without a current element set are not placed. Informational density only.

Sources

Launches with the most fragments still on orbit

All launches →
LaunchDateSiteOwnersDebris on orbit
01FENGYUN 1C1999-02510 May 1999Taiyuan Satellite Launch CenterPRC2,316
02YUNHAI-3 012022-15111 Nov 2022Taiyuan Satellite Launch CenterPRC618
03COSMOS 22511993-03616 Jun 1993Plesetsk CosmodromeCIS616
04QIANFAN-12024-14006 Aug 2024Taiyuan Satellite Launch CenterPRC577
05COSMOS 12751981-05304 Jun 1981Plesetsk CosmodromeCIS401
06NOAA 162000-05521 Sept 2000Vandenberg Space Force Base (Western Range), CaliforniaUS354
07NIMBUS 41970-02508 Apr 1970Vandenberg Space Force Base (Western Range), CaliforniaUS262
08NIMBUS 61975-05212 Jun 1975Vandenberg Space Force Base (Western Range), CaliforniaUS219
09AEHF-4 (USA 288)2018-07917 Oct 2018Cape Canaveral / Kennedy Space Center (Eastern Range), FloridaUS213
10OPS 4682 (SNAPSHOT)1965-02703 Apr 1965Vandenberg Space Force Base (Western Range), CaliforniaUS208
11NOAA 31973-08606 Nov 1973Vandenberg Space Force Base (Western Range), CaliforniaUS195
12SPEKTR-R2011-03718 Jul 2011Baikonur Cosmodrome (Tyuratam)CIS181
13TRANSIT 4A1961-01529 Jun 1961Cape Canaveral / Kennedy Space Center (Eastern Range), FloridaUS181
14NOAA 51976-07729 Jul 1976Vandenberg Space Force Base (Western Range), CaliforniaUS172
15COSMOS 22271992-09325 Dec 1992Baikonur Cosmodrome (Tyuratam)CIS161

Fragments are attributed to the COSPAR launch of their parent object. Owner codes are SATCAT designators (e.g. PRC, CIS, US).

History

Debris growth and decay

Debris catalogued by launch year

Still on orbit vs decayed
Debris catalogued by launch year of the parent object: still on orbit vs decayed01K2K3K4K19581968197819881998200820182026
  • Still on orbit
  • Decayed

Decayed = catalogued − still on orbit (derived from the two published series). Year = launch year of the parent object, not the fragmentation date.

Decays per year by object type

Objects decayed per year by type05001K1.5K2K2.5K19571967197719871997200720172026
  • Payloads
  • Debris
  • Rocket bodies

Published SATCAT decay dates. Recent reentries are listed on /reentries.

Largest

Largest tracked debris and rocket bodies

Browse all →
ObjectTypeRCS (m²)PerigeeApogeeLaunchedCountry
01ATLAS 5 CENTAUR R/B#40947Rocket body52.494,265 km35,351 km02 Oct 2015US
02FALCON 9 R/B#40618Rocket body44.43181 km16,498 km27 Apr 2015US
03ARIANE 5 R/B#29646Rocket body43.92254 km29,370 km08 Dec 2006FR
04DELTA 4 R/B#35492Rocket body42.776,615 km35,098 km27 Jun 2009US
05FALCON 9 R/B#42433Rocket body42.32256 km26,868 km30 Mar 2017US
06ARIANE 5 R/B#29275Rocket body41.19277 km30,752 km11 Aug 2006FR
07DELTA 4 R/B#36412Rocket body39.756,550 km35,213 km04 Mar 2010US
08ARIANE 5 R/B#28904Rocket body38.94433 km35,297 km16 Nov 2005FR
09ARIANE 44LP R/B#19689Rocket body36.91452 km35,239 km11 Dec 1988FR
10DELTA 4 R/B#29156Rocket body36.546,552 km35,177 km24 May 2006US
11ATLAS 5 CENTAUR R/B#40888Rocket body35.783,780 km35,182 km02 Sept 2015US
12SL-12 R/B(2)#23845Rocket body34.7711,916 km35,993 km08 Apr 1996RU
13ARIANE 5 R/B#41383Rocket body34.04207 km23,578 km09 Mar 2016FR
14ARIANE 5 R/B#40942Rocket body32.89206 km28,327 km30 Sept 2015FR
15ARIANE 44LP DEB#25279Debris32.49378 km32,008 km08 Aug 1989FR

RCS = radar cross-section as published in the SATCAT (m²); it is a size proxy, not mass. Counts of catalogued objects only; no collision probabilities are computed or implied.