USA 32 broke up on September 13, 2026
Suspected from Sep 15, 2026, 4:17 AM UTC, confirmed on September 13, 2026 by Space-Track’s notice of September 13, 2026.
Download the figures (PNG)Height chartOrbit at the event time
In the news: A 38-year-old US spy satellite breaks apart in orbit
Mean altitude of every set of elements, August 29, 2026 to September 28, 2026
One dot per set · 110 setsMean altitude from the mean motion of each set of elements Space-Track published for USA 32 (19460). Dots in red are the sets after the jump. The dashed grey line is where the last set before the jump, carried at its own drag rate, would have put the orbit.
Where it was at 9:12 PM UTC
The orbit USA 32 was on at the estimated event time: one orbit before it from the last set before the jump (grey) and one after it from the first set after the jump (red). The point is where the last set before the jump put it then, 792 km up. Follow it on the live map now. The live map plays back the past 7 days, so this instant is beyond it.
The parent and its pieces
- Body
- USA 32, 19460
- International designator
- 1988-078A
- Class
- Payload, ended per GCAT
- Launched
- 1988
- Ended
- 1998
- Mass
- 1,450 kg
- Orbit
- about 777 km, 85° to the equator
No other piece of 1988-078 was in the catalogue when it was read.
New pieces since September 13, 2026: none. When one is catalogued under 1988-078, this warning is confirmed and the count is kept here.
Masses: data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org, licensed CC BY 4.0
Ends of operations: data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org, licensed CC BY 4.0
Why it was raised
| Set of elements | Epoch (UTC) | Mean altitude |
|---|---|---|
| Last before the jump | Sep 13, 2026, 12:59 PM | 776.854 km |
| Where drag alone would have taken it | Sep 14, 2026, 10:28 PM | 776.853 km |
| First after the jump | Sep 14, 2026, 10:28 PM | 776.380 km |
- The jump: about 470 m below where drag alone would have taken it, more than drag explains, and a drop the other objects at its height did not share.
- The threshold for ended payloads between 700 km and 800 km: 20 m, set from the set-to-set scatter of that class and band, 0.2 m.
- Its own sets: over the 31 days before, 88 comparisons from one set to the next scattered by 0.11 m, and the jump is 4,309 times that; it had to be 10.
- The event time: the orbits of the last set before the jump and the first after it, propagated, come closest at Sep 13, 2026, 9:12 PM UTC; the spread of ± 8 min is where they stay within twice that distance.
- What confirmed it: Space-Track’s notice of September 13, 2026.
Source: Orbinauts (orbinauts.com), orbits from Space-Track. Event times are estimated from the elements either side of the jump, never from a notice.
Its pieces in the catalogue
No new piece of 1988-078 is catalogued yet: Space-Track’s notice confirmed it.