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BEIDOU-2 G3 — Live Satellite Tracking (NORAD 36590)

Track BEIDOU-2 G3 (NORAD catalog number 36590) 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 has been on orbit since 2010, launched on the 24th orbital launch of that year (COSPAR designation 2010-024A). As of this element set it had completed roughly 6,003 revolutions of Earth.

Moving at about 3.08 km/s, BEIDOU-2 G3 flies a geosynchronous orbit roughly 35,786 km up: its 23.9-hour period matches Earth's rotation, but at 4.8° inclination it is not geostationary — seen from the ground it traces a daily figure-eight around a fixed longitude, swinging about 5° north and south of the equator. The orbit is essentially circular (eccentricity 0.0004). Its near-equatorial 4.8° inclination keeps it above the tropics at all times. Its orbital plane crosses the equator northbound at right ascension 60.8°.

Orbital elements

Orbit regime	geostationary/geosynchronous orbit (GEO)
Perigee × apogee altitude	~35,778 km × 35,810 km
Inclination	4.81°
Orbital period	1436.1 min (1.00 rev/day)
Eccentricity	0.00038
Element set epoch	2026-10-20
COSPAR designation	2010-024A
NORAD catalog number	36590

This page's orbital elements come from the CelesTrak catalog of 2026-10-23. 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 Navigation group

BEIDOU-2 G3 is part of China's BeiDou fleet — one of 156 global-navigation satellites in the WatchSat catalog across GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou. GNSS spacecraft broadcast precise time signals from orbits around 20,000 km up; a phone fixes its position by comparing several of them at once. See the whole navigation group live in 3D.

Can you see BEIDOU-2 G3 from the ground?

Not with the naked eye. At its altitude BEIDOU-2 G3 is far beyond unaided visibility — following satellites this high takes a telescope and good timing. You can still track it precisely in the live 3D view above, or check the “When can I see it?” panel in the live view.

Related satellites

Nearest catalog neighbors of BEIDOU-2 G3 in the Navigation group — usually craft from the same or adjacent launches:

Browse the Navigation directory or the full satellite directory.

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