CLASSIFIED
SBSS (USA 216)
Space-Based Space Surveillance (SBSS Pathfinder) · US Space Force / Boeing / Ball Aerospace
Right now
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SBSS-1 (USA 216) — the pathfinder satellite for the US military's Space Based Space Surveillance program, and the first American satellite built specifically to watch other satellites from orbit rather than watch Earth. Carrying a 30 cm telescope on a two-axis gimbal, SBSS was designed to examine every object in geosynchronous orbit at least once per day, replacing a surveillance role previously handled by the Midcourse Space Experiment. The $823 million program suffered years of launch delays before finally reaching orbit in September 2010, and its data now feeds directly into the US Space Surveillance Network's catalog of active satellites and debris.
Its orbit
- Orbit
- Low Earth Orbitcan appear as a fast-moving star at dawn or dusk
- Altitude
- 289–356 mi (464–573 km)
- Inclination
- 97.7°
- One orbit
- 94.9 minutes15.2 orbits a day
- NORAD ID
- 37168
- Int’l designator
- 2010-048A
- Launched
- 2010
Orbital elements from CelesTrak, as of 20 Sep 2026.
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