VERTECS beside TRACERS 2
A satellite of KYUT moved up beside a satellite of NASA, 0.9 km away at the nearest, and left after 1 day 20 h.
Left · the one that moved opened the distance on June 15, 2026
- Nearest
- 0.9 km
- Jun 13 · 10:59 PM UTC
- Beside for
- 1 day 20 h
- Jun 13, 10:59 PM to Jun 15, 7:34 PM UTC
- Took to come beside
- 1 day 19 h
- same plane Jun 12, same height Jun 13
- Orbit
- LEO
- low Earth orbit
Whether KYUT or NASA has said what this rendezvous was is not recorded yet. What others said is below; this page draws no conclusion.
The stages
Each step is one of Space-Track’s element sets, run through SGP4 and set against the other’s. A stage is raised by one set and confirmed when a later one agrees.
published 11:16 PM UTC
Same plane seen
VERTECS’s orbit was found in TRACERS 2’s plane, 0.006° off, and 0.25 km lower.
Δa −0.25 km · θ 0.006°
published Jun 14, 5:02 AM UTC
Same height seen
VERTECS’s orbit had come to within 0.04 km of TRACERS 2’s height.
0.86 km · Δa +0.04 km · θ 0.000°
published Jun 14, 5:02 AM UTC
Beside raised
A set placed VERTECS beside TRACERS 2. One set raises it; a later one must agree.
0.86 km · 5.8 km a day later · Δa +0.04 km · θ 0.000°
published 8:46 AM UTC
Beside confirmed
A later set agreed: VERTECS stayed beside TRACERS 2.
2.05 km · 6.7 km a day later · Δa +0.04 km · θ 0.000°
published 9:36 PM UTC
Left raised
A set saw VERTECS moving away from TRACERS 2. One set raises it; a later one must agree.
10,643.20 km · 12,416.6 km a day later · Δa −22.90 km · θ 0.027°
published Jun 16, 3:04 AM UTC
Left confirmed
A later set agreed: VERTECS had left TRACERS 2.
10,834.30 km · 12,552.7 km a day later · Δa −22.90 km · θ 0.028°
published 7:27 AM UTC
Same height raised
VERTECS’s orbit had come to within 0.03 km of TRACERS 2’s height.
3.60 km · 8.9 km a day later · Δa −0.03 km · θ 0.001°
Reported elsewhere
No report elsewhere names this rendezvous yet.
Every verdict as numbers
| Stage | State | Set epoch (UTC) | Published (UTC) | Distance | A day later | Δa | θ | Exclusion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Same plane | seen | 2026-06-12 03:34:47 | 2026-06-12 23:16:46 | −0.25 km | 0.0063° | |||
| Same height | seen | 2026-06-13 22:59:45 | 2026-06-14 05:02:57 | 0.86 km | +0.04 km | 0.0004° | ||
| Beside | raised | 2026-06-13 22:59:45 | 2026-06-14 05:02:57 | 0.86 km | 5.77 km | +0.04 km | 0.0004° | |
| Beside | confirmed | 2026-06-14 03:49:11 | 2026-06-14 08:46:35 | 2.05 km | 6.67 km | +0.04 km | 0.0004° | |
| Left | raised | 2026-06-15 19:34:22 | 2026-06-15 21:36:18 | 10,643.20 km | 12,416.62 km | −22.90 km | 0.0265° | |
| Left | confirmed | 2026-06-15 21:37:38 | 2026-06-16 03:04:56 | 10,834.30 km | 12,552.70 km | −22.90 km | 0.0278° | |
| Same height | raised | 2026-06-16 02:27:04 | 2026-06-16 07:27:16 | 3.60 km | 8.94 km | −0.03 km | 0.0008° |
Δa is the semi-major axis of the one that moved less the other’s; θ is the angle between the two orbits’ planes. A day later is where the set puts the two 24 hours on, with no further manoeuvre. An exclusion tag on any verdict would keep the pair off the list.