BLACKJACK ACES-1

MilitaryLEOSSOPolarUnited States

BLACKJACK ACES-1 is a military satellite, as listed in Jonathan McDowell's GCAT catalogue, with ownership listed as United States in CelesTrak's catalogue, currently in low Earth orbit, around 515 km altitude. It completes one orbit of Earth roughly every 95 minutes at an inclination of 97.6°. It was launched in 2023. Track its live position and see when it passes over your location on azmth.

Orbital data

NORAD ID: 56956
COSPAR ID: 2023-084AA
Type: Military
Orbit: LEO
Perigee (lowest): 515 km
Apogee (highest): 517 km
Inclination: 97.64°
Orbital period: 95 min
Launch year: 2023
Owner (CelesTrak): United States

Orbital data updated: 2026-10-18 · from CelesTrak, refreshed every 2 hours.

Who operates it

United StatesLIVEActive

Communications

Independent assessment

GCAT classes it as a military satellite for communications and records it as active (17 Oct 2026).

Data: GCAT · CC BY 4.0 Class, mission and status adapted from GCAT by Jonathan McDowell, CC BY 4.0, data update 17 Oct 2026.

Military satellites, counted and explained →

About LEO orbit

Low Earth Orbit. Up to 2,000 km altitude. Where most satellites live including the ISS (~420 km), Starlink (~550 km), and Earth observation. Orbital period roughly 90 minutes.