SURCAL 159, 2872
Orbit data source: Space-Track
SURCAL 159, 2872 is a payload satellite owned by NRL (US) in LEO that was launched on Wed, 31 May 1967 UTC via a THOR SLV-2 AGENA D 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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2872 intel report (Beta)
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Edit Public Description
Identifier
Orbit
Country
USRelated business
Manufacturer
NRL
Mission
Operational Defense Calibration
Bus & Motor
NRL 14"?, Unknown motor
Mass
3 kg wet, 3 kg dry
Launch date (UTC)
Launch vehicle
Launch site
Object type
Shape & HBR
Sphere, 0.2 m
Radar Cross Section
0.126 m², Medium (>0.1 m² and < 1m²)
Expand to show TLE details & historyLast TLE update: 9 hours ago
TLE from 9 hours ago
0 SURCAL 159
1 02872U 67053F 25260.93056051 .00000079 00000-0 90939-4 0 9994
2 02872 69.9730 227.0464 0003918 123.2365 236.9118 13.99501664972117Epoch: 2025-09-17T22:20Z
TLE epoch observation values (Epoch: 2025-09-17T22:20:00.428Z)
Latitude
-0.00003°
Longitude
-105.05483°
Altitude
899.392 km
Speed
7.402 km/s
True Right ascension
15h 08m 11s
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
00:11:37
Azimuth
Unknown
Elevation
Unknown
Doppler factor
Unknown
Orbital elements
Apogee altitude
896.413 km
Perigee altitude
890.715 km
Semi-major axis
7,271.701 km
Eccentricity
0.00039
Inclination
69.973°
RAAN
227.0464°
Arg. of periapsis
123.2365°
True anomaly
236.87419°
Mean anomaly
236.9118°
Eccentric anomaly
236.893°
Mean motion
3.50017 °/min
Orbital period
102.85 mins
BSTAR
0.000090939
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Other satellites on launch #53 in the year 1967 (1967-05-31 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.SURCAL 159 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 | 2025-09-18 07:27:13.235Z | 7.51° NNE | 2025-09-18 07:31:13.235Z | 52.957° ENE | 18.335° | 2025-09-18 07:34:13.235Z | 87.4° E |
| 10 mins | 2025-09-18 09:12:13.235Z | 329.811° NNW | 2025-09-18 09:17:13.235Z | 223.748° SW | 43.238° | 2025-09-18 09:22:13.235Z | 166.234° S |
| 9 mins | 2025-09-18 22:28:13.235Z | 166.173° S | 2025-09-18 22:32:13.235Z | 108.485° ESE | 31.901° | 2025-09-18 22:37:13.235Z | 42.16° NE |
| 8 mins | 2025-09-19 00:14:13.235Z | 252.788° W | 2025-09-19 00:17:13.235Z | 294.642° NW | 27.9° | 2025-09-19 00:22:13.235Z | 2.966° 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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