Overview
Most LEO satellites are launched for commercial use (75.1%) and for the purpose of communications (62.1%).
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Insights from the LEO satellite dataset
Which year saw the most LEO satellites launched?
Who operates or owns the most LEO satellites?
Which country operates or owns the most LEO satellites?
Which rocket has delivered the most LEO satellites to space?
Which launch site has launched the most LEO satellites to space?
What is the most common type of satellite orbit?
Apogee, Perigee & Period
Satellite Mass
Highlights on some of the commercial satellites:
Heaviest satellite launched by OneWeb Satellites into space at 148 kg
OneWeb-0013 is a commercial satellite operated by OneWeb Satellites (United Kingdom) for the purpose of communications.
A polar LEO satellite, it was launched into space using Soyuz-2.1b as the launch vehicle from Baikonur Cosmodrome on 6 February 2020. OneWeb-0013 was constructed by OneWeb Satellites/Airbus (UK).
Designated with COSPAR ID 2020-008A and NORAD ID 45131, OneWeb-0013 is designed to operate in space for a lifetime of 5 years. It has a launch mass of 148 kg.
With an orbital eccentricity of 3.29E-04, the satellite's perigee, which is the point of the orbit closest to the Earth's center of mass, is 1,215km while its apogee, which is the point of the orbit farthest from the Earth's center of mass, is 1,220km. It takes 94 minutes to orbit the Earth at an inclination of 87 degrees to the equatorial plane of the Earth.
Heaviest satellite launched by Canadian Space Agency into space at 1,430 kg
A government satellite, RCM-1 is operated by Canadian Space Agency of Canada for the purpose of earth observation (Radar Imaging).
Delivered via Falcon 9 (launch vehicle) from Vandenberg AFB, it was launched into space on 12 June 2019 and orbits the Earth as a sun-synchronous LEO satellite. RCM-1 was constructed by MDA Corporation (Canada).
Designed with an operational lifetime of 7 years, RCM-1 has a launch mass of 1,430 kg and navigates with the COSPAR ID 2019-033A and NORAD ID 44322.
Taking 97 minutes to orbit the Earth, the satellite's perigee, which is the point of the orbit closest to the Earth's center of mass, is 584km while its apogee, which is the point of the orbit farthest from the Earth's center of mass, is 604km. The eccentricity of the orbit is 1.44E-03 and it orbits at an inclination of 98 degrees to the equatorial plane of the Earth.
Yunhai-1 2 is a government satellite operated by Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (China) for the purpose of earth observation (Earth Science).
A sun-synchronous LEO satellite, it was launched into space using Long March 2D as the launch vehicle from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on 25 September 2019. Yunhai-1 2 was constructed by Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST) (China).
Yunhai-1 2 navigates with the COSPAR ID 2019-063A and NORAD ID 44547.
Taking 101 minutes to orbit the Earth, the satellite's perigee, which is the point of the orbit closest to the Earth's center of mass, is 782km while its apogee, which is the point of the orbit farthest from the Earth's center of mass, is 785km. The eccentricity of the orbit is 2.10E-04 and it orbits at an inclination of 99 degrees to the equatorial plane of the Earth.
Heaviest satellite launched by Iridium Communications, Inc. into space at 860 kg
Designed for communications, Iridium Next 167 is a government and commercial satellite operated by Iridium Communications, Inc. (USA).
Delivered via Falcon 9 (launch vehicle) from Vandenberg AFB, it was launched into space on 11 January 2019 and orbits the Earth as a polar LEO satellite. Iridium Next 167 was constructed by Thales Alenia Space/Orbital ATK (France/Italy/USA).
With a launch mass of 860kg and a dry mass of 678kg, Iridium Next 167 is designed to operate in space for a lifetime of 15 years. It orbits around the Earth with the COSPAR ID 2019-002K and NORAD ID 43931.
Taking 97 minutes to orbit the Earth, the satellite's perigee, which is the point of the orbit closest to the Earth's center of mass, is 612km while its apogee, which is the point of the orbit farthest from the Earth's center of mass, is 625km. The eccentricity of the orbit is 9.30E-04.
With generated usable power of 50 watts, Iridium Next 167 orbits at an inclination of 87 degrees to the equatorial plane of the Earth.
ICON.
Second heaviest satellite launched by Pegasus into space at 288 kg
Operated by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of USA, ICON is a government satellite launched for the purpose of space science.
A non-polar inclined LEO satellite, it was launched into space using Pegasus as the launch vehicle from Stargazer L-1011 on 11 October 2019. ICON was constructed by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (USA).
ICON has a launch mass of 288 kg and navigates with the COSPAR ID 2019-068A and NORAD ID 44628.
Taking 97 minutes to orbit the Earth, the satellite's perigee, which is the point of the orbit closest to the Earth's center of mass, is 579km while its apogee, which is the point of the orbit farthest from the Earth's center of mass, is 601km. The eccentricity of the orbit is 1.58E-03 and it orbits at an inclination of 27 degrees to the equatorial plane of the Earth.
Third heaviest satellite launched by Soyuz into space at 2,924 kg
Operated by MDA Corporation of Canada, Radarsat-2 is a commercial satellite launched for the purpose of earth observation (Radar Imaging).
Delivered via Soyuz (launch vehicle) from Baikonur Cosmodrome, it was launched into space on 14 December 2007 and orbits the Earth as a sun-synchronous LEO satellite. Radarsat-2 was constructed by MacDonald, Dettwiler/Thales Alenia Spazio (Canada/Italy).
With a launch mass of 2,924kg, Radarsat-2 is designed to operate in space for a lifetime of 7 years. It orbits around the Earth with the COSPAR ID 2007-061A and NORAD ID 32382.
Taking 101 minutes to orbit the Earth, the satellite's perigee, which is the point of the orbit closest to the Earth's center of mass, is 791km while its apogee, which is the point of the orbit farthest from the Earth's center of mass, is 793km. The eccentricity of the orbit is 1.40E-04 and it orbits at an inclination of 99 degrees to the equatorial plane of the Earth.
Get more insights from these satellite datasets
Full datasets: All satellites by launch date | The Heaviest Satellites That Are Launched to Space
By Use Type: Civil-use satellites | Commercial satellites | Government satellites | Military satellites
By Country: USA | UK | France | Germany | Japan | China | Russia | Australia | Canada
By Orbit Class/Type: LEO satellites | MEO satellites | GEO satellites | Elliptical orbit | Polar orbit | Equatorial orbit | Non-polar inclined orbit | Sun-synchronous orbit | Molniya orbit
By Operators: SpaceX | EUTELSAT | SES | European Space Agency (ESA) | Planet Labs | Iridium | Spire Global | OneWeb | Swarm Technologies | NASA - Dataset of Satellites Launched (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) | Canadian Space Agency (CSA) - Dataset of Satellites Launched
By Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9 | Ariane 5 | Ariane 5 ECA | Delta 2 | Dnepr | Electron | Falcon Heavy | Long March 2C | Long March 2D | Long March 3B | Pegasus | Proton | Proton M | PSLV | Rokot | Soyuz | Soyuz-2.1b | Vega
By Launch Vehicle: Cape Canaveral | Baikonur Cosmodrome | Guiana Space Center | International Space Station | Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center | Plesetsk Cosmodrome | Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 | Satish Dhawan Space Centre | Taiyuan Launch Center | Vandenberg AFB | Xichang Satellite Launch Center | Boeing Satellite Systems | Airbus Defense and Space | EADS Astrium | Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems | Space Systems/Loral | Surrey Satellite Technology | Technical University Berlin | Thales Alenia Space
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