USA 23, 18009
Orbit data source: Space-Track
USA 23, 18009 is an American payload satellite in LEO that was launched on Fri, 15 May 1987 UTC via an ATLAS H launch vehicle from the Air Force Western Test Range (AFWTR). Payload-class satellites include a variety of spacecraft equipped with specific instruments for various scientific and technological missions. These include communications satellites like Starlink; space stations such as the ISS; scientific satellites like the Hubble; Earth observation satellites from companies like Planet Labs, Umbra, and HawkEye 360; GPS; miniature CubeSats for education and research; and military/defense satellites.
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18009 intel report (Beta)
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Identifier
Orbit
Country
USRelated business
Manufacturer
Martin Marietta
Mission
Defense Sigint
Bus & Motor
NOSS SSU, Unknown motor
Mass
200 kg wet, 200 kg dry
Launch date (UTC)
Launch vehicle
Launch site
Object type
Shape & HBR
Box + 1 Ant, 5.0 m
Radar Cross Section
1.051 m², Large (>1 m²)
Expand to show TLE details & historyLast TLE update: 3 days ago
TLE from 3 days ago
0 USA 23
1 18009U 87043E 26170.72172080 .00010666 00000-0 63200-3 0 9996
2 18009 63.2953 350.4924 0781651 105.3498 263.5239 13.87426453345840Epoch: 2026-06-19T17:19Z
TLE epoch observation values (Epoch: 2026-06-19T17:19:16.677Z)
Latitude
-0.00001°
Longitude
-177.27372°
Altitude
1,047.37 km
Speed
7.275 km/s
True Right ascension
23h 21m 58s
True Declination
0° 00' 00"
Sunlit
Visualization orbit readout
Latitude
Unknown
Longitude
Unknown
Altitude
Unknown
Speed
Unknown
Apparent Right ascension
Unknown
Apparent Declination
Unknown
Sunlit
Visualization observer readout
Local Sidereal Time
00:39:52
Azimuth
Unknown
Elevation
Unknown
Doppler factor
Unknown
Orbital elements
Apogee altitude
1,508.218 km
Perigee altitude
364.724 km
Semi-major axis
7,314.608 km
Eccentricity
0.07817
Inclination
63.2953°
RAAN
350.4924°
Arg. of periapsis
105.3498°
True anomaly
254.75535°
Mean anomaly
263.5239°
Eccentric anomaly
259.12579°
Mean motion
3.46942 °/min
Orbital period
103.76 mins
BSTAR
0.000632
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Other satellites on launch #43 in the year 1987 (1987-05-15 UTC)
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You can import UDL-sourced sensor .json files into the Sandbox to generate a visibility chart that accounts for multi-vendor sensor geometry.USA 23 Visibility forecast
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Span | Click to sort rows by Start time (UTC) header in descending order | Start Az. | Max El. time (UTC) | Max El. Az. | Max El. | End time (UTC) | End Az. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 mins | 2026-06-22 14:43:19.987Z | 273.791° WNW | 2026-06-22 14:46:19.987Z | 320.492° NNW | 15.948° | 2026-06-22 14:47:19.987Z | 338.852° N |
| 5 mins | 2026-06-22 21:59:19.987Z | 329.43° NNW | 2026-06-22 22:00:19.987Z | 338.245° N | 42.241° | 2026-06-22 22:04:19.987Z | 145.293° SSE |
| 7 mins | 2026-06-23 13:09:19.987Z | 213.56° SW | 2026-06-23 13:12:19.987Z | 218.136° SW | 43.653° | 2026-06-23 13:16:19.987Z | 33.629° NE |
Co-orbital & Co-planar RSOs
Thresholds — Semi-major Axis: ±100 km, RAAN: ±3°, Inclination: ±5°
TCA is derived from TLE conjunctions
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CAUTION: Conjunctions in this section are generated from low-fidelity TLE screenings
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