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SURCAL 159 — Live Satellite Tracking (NORAD 2872)
Track SURCAL 159 (NORAD catalog number 2872) live on the WatchSat interactive 3D globe above. Its position is propagated in real time from the latest CelesTrak two-line element set using the SGP4/SDP4 orbital model — the same math professional trackers run. It is object F of 1967's 53rd orbital launch (COSPAR designation 1967-053F). It went up together with 2 other satellites from that launch still in the active catalog.
Moving at about 7.41 km/s, SURCAL 159 flies in low Earth orbit at an altitude of roughly 897 × 907 km, completing one revolution every 102.9 minutes — about 14.0 trips around Earth per day. The orbit is essentially circular (eccentricity 0.0007). Inclined 70.0° to the equator, it overflies every latitude up to about 70° north and south. Its orbital plane crosses the equator northbound at right ascension 184.2°. Earth's equatorial bulge drifts that plane westward about 2.15° per day.
Orbital elements
| Orbit regime | low Earth orbit (LEO) |
|---|---|
| Perigee × apogee altitude | ~897 km × 907 km |
| Inclination | 69.97° |
| Orbital period | 102.9 min (14.00 rev/day) |
| Eccentricity | 0.00071 |
| Element set epoch | 2026-09-07 |
| COSPAR designation | 1967-053F |
| NORAD catalog number | 2872 |
This page's orbital elements come from the CelesTrak catalog of 2026-09-08. The live 3D view above fetches its own current CelesTrak data when the page opens, through an edge cache that refreshes roughly every 30 minutes.
About the Other Active Satellites group
SURCAL 159 is one of 4,471 active satellites in WatchSat's general catalog — the broad population of Earth-observation, communications, science, amateur-radio and technology spacecraft outside the giant broadband constellations. Browse all other active satellites live in 3D.
Can you see SURCAL 159 from the ground?
Sometimes. Like most low-Earth-orbit spacecraft, SURCAL 159 is visible only around dawn and dusk, when your sky is dark but the satellite is still sunlit — and whether you can spot it depends on its size and reflectivity. See pass predictions for your location for when it is above your horizon and sunlit.
Related satellites
Nearest catalog neighbors of SURCAL 159 in the Other Active Satellites group — usually craft from the same or adjacent launches:
- OPS 5712 (P/L 153) (NORAD 2874)
- LES-5 (NORAD 2866)
- OPS 5712 (P/L 160) (NORAD 2826)
- CALSPHERE 4A (NORAD 1520)
- TEMPSAT 1 (NORAD 1512)
- LCS 1 (NORAD 1361)
Browse the Other Active Satellites directory or the full satellite directory · What is a TLE? · WatchSat live globe