COSMOS 2251 DEB, 38481
Orbit data source: Space-Track
COSMOS 2251 DEB, 38481 is space debris in LEO originally from a launch on Wed, 16 Jun 1993 UTC launched from the Plesetsk Missile And Space Complex (PKMTR). The debris from Iridium 33, an American commercial communications satellite, has been tracked extensively since its accidental collision with the defunct Russian satellite Cosmos 2251 in 2009. This event, occurring at high speed in low Earth orbit (LEO), generated thousands of pieces of space debris, significantly increasing the risk of further collisions. The Iridium 33 debris cloud has impacted space traffic management and orbital debris mitigation strategies, making it a subject of ongoing study in space situational awareness.
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38481 intel report (Beta)
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Identifier
Orbit
Country
CISRelated business
Manufacturer
Unknown
Mission
Spacecraft
Bus & Motor
Unknown
Mass
Unknown
Launch date (UTC)
Launch vehicle
Unknown
Launch site
Object type
Shape & HBR
Unknown shape, 0.1 m
Radar Cross Section
Small (<0.1 m²)
Expand to show TLE details & historyLast TLE update: 5 days ago
TLE from 5 days ago
0 COSMOS 2251 DEB
1 38481U 93036BTR 26105.83548544 .00000836 00000-0 51089-3 0 9993
2 38481 73.9307 152.9869 0226378 68.4802 294.0295 13.95422140607916Epoch: 2026-04-15T20:03Z
TLE epoch observation values (Epoch: 2026-04-15T20:03:05.942Z)
Latitude
-0°
Longitude
8.22046°
Altitude
848.214 km
Speed
7.461 km/s
True Right ascension
10h 11m 56s
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
18:56:22
Azimuth
Unknown
Elevation
Unknown
Doppler factor
Unknown
Orbital elements
Apogee altitude
1,072.295 km
Perigee altitude
742.439 km
Semi-major axis
7,285.504 km
Eccentricity
0.02264
Inclination
73.9307°
RAAN
152.9869°
Arg. of periapsis
68.4802°
True anomaly
291.63331°
Mean anomaly
294.0295°
Eccentric anomaly
292.8341°
Mean motion
3.49023 °/min
Orbital period
103.15 mins
BSTAR
0.00051089
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Other satellites on launch #36 in the year 1993 (1993-06-16 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.COSMOS 2251 DEB 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 mins | 2026-04-20 12:26:28.789Z | 18.351° NNE | 2026-04-20 12:29:28.789Z | 56.13° ENE | 19.69° | 2026-04-20 12:33:28.789Z | 103.557° ESE |
| 9 mins | 2026-04-20 14:11:28.789Z | 325.184° NNW | 2026-04-20 14:15:28.789Z | 240.084° WSW | 38.999° | 2026-04-20 14:20:28.789Z | 180.545° SSW |
| 8 mins | 2026-04-21 03:30:28.789Z | 197.243° SSW | 2026-04-21 03:33:28.789Z | 194.671° SSW | 44.138° | 2026-04-21 03:38:28.789Z | 19.304° NNE |
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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