AEROCUBE 16A

MilitaryLEOUnited States

AEROCUBE 16A 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 430 km altitude. It completes one orbit of Earth roughly every 93 minutes at an inclination of 50.0°. It was launched in 2024. Track its live position and see when it passes over your location on azmth.

Orbital data

NORAD ID: 59290
COSPAR ID: 2024-053C
Type: Military
Orbit: LEO
Perigee (lowest): 430 km
Apogee (highest): 433 km
Inclination: 49.99°
Orbital period: 93 min
Launch year: 2024
Owner (CelesTrak): United States

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

Who operates it

United StatesLIVEActive

Technology test

Official description

“‘This launch, which is putting research missions into space, exemplifies the NRO’s commitment to building partnerships with private industry and academia,’ said Dr. Chris Scolese, director of the NRO.”

National Reconnaissance Office (undated, about the launch of 21 Mar 2024)

Independent assessment

GCAT classes it as a military satellite for technology testing 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.