CLASSIFIED
YAOGAN-30 01
Chinese Military Reconnaissance · CASC / PLA
Right now
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Yaogan-30, launched May 2016 — the seed satellite that gave its name to an entire family of Chinese naval ELINT triplets launched in the years that followed. Unlike its triplet-formation namesakes, Yaogan-30 itself flew alone, with orbital characteristics suggesting it belongs to the broader JB-6 optical reconnaissance lineage rather than the ELINT triangulation role its later numerical siblings would take on. Its 2016 launch preceded the first genuine Yaogan-30 triplet by over a year.
Its orbit
- Orbit
- Low Earth Orbitcan appear as a fast-moving star at dawn or dusk
- Altitude
- 395–407 mi (635–655 km)
- Inclination
- 97.9°
- One orbit
- 97.5 minutes14.8 orbits a day
- NORAD ID
- 41473
- Int’l designator
- 2016-029A
- Launched
- 2016
Orbital elements from CelesTrak, as of 22 Sep 2026.
More classified
- YAOGAN-30 02AChinese ELINT Naval Surveillance (Triplet Formation)
- YAOGAN-30 02BChinese ELINT Naval Surveillance (Yaogan-30 Triplet)
- YAOGAN-30 02CChinese ELINT Naval Surveillance (Yaogan-30 Triplet)
- YAOGAN-30 03AChinese ELINT Naval Surveillance (Yaogan-30 Triplet)
- YAOGAN-30 03BChinese ELINT Naval Surveillance (Yaogan-30 Triplet)
- YAOGAN-30 03CChinese ELINT Naval Surveillance (Yaogan-30 Triplet)