Without a telescope
Not with the naked eyeIt needs binoculars or a telescope: magnitude +8.4 at its best, and the faintest stars the eye can see are about magnitude +6.
Satellites›Amateur radio satellites›RADIO ROSTO (RS15)
RADIO ROSTO (RS15)
RADIO ROSTO (RS15) is an amateur radio satellite from Russia (and the former Soviet Union), launched on December 26, 1994 from Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Its orbit is stretched: it comes as low as 1,887 km above the ground and climbs to 2,157 km, once every 127.7 minutes.
Where RADIO ROSTO (RS15) is right now
The gold ring is its orbit, and the line drops to the point on the ground under it. Inside the white circle it is above the horizon. Drag the globe to turn it, pinch or use the buttons to come closer; the target button brings you back to the satellite. The 2D map shows its path over the ground for the next lap: gold where it is in sunlight, dashed where it is in Earth’s shadow.
Finding RADIO ROSTO (RS15)…
RADIO ROSTO (RS15)
Finding RADIO ROSTO (RS15)…
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Can you see it?
From where
It passes straight overhead between latitudes 65° north and 65° south, and it rises above the horizon everywhere on Earth.
A satellite shows only when your sky is dark and it is still in sunlight: in the hours after dusk and before dawn.
When it passes over you
The app works out its passes over your exact location, alerts you before one, and leads you to it with an arrow in the camera view.
The facts
- Catalogue number (NORAD)
- 23439
- International designator
- 1994-085A
- Type
- Satellite
- Belongs to
- Russia (and the former Soviet Union)
- Launched
- December 26, 1994
- Launched from
- Baikonur, Kazakhstan
- Status
- Partly operational
- Orbit
- Medium Earth orbit
- Lowest point
- 1,887 km
- Highest point
- 2,157 km
- Tilt to the equator
- 64.8°
- One lap
- 127.7 minutes
- Laps a day
- 11.28
- Speed
- 6.89 km/s
- At its brightest
- mag +8.4 estimated, overhead
- Standard brightness
- mag +7.0 from 1,000 km, half lit
- Size on radar
- 0.6 m²
Orbit measured November 13, 2026, from CelesTrak. Heights are above the ground at the equator. Page updated November 14, 2026.
Quick answers
Where is RADIO ROSTO (RS15) right now?
The map on this page shows where RADIO ROSTO (RS15) is at this moment, the path it will follow over the ground for the next lap, and the part of the Earth it is above the horizon for. It is worked out from the latest tracking data.
How high is RADIO ROSTO (RS15)?
Between 1,887 km at its lowest and 2,157 km at its highest, above the ground.
How fast does RADIO ROSTO (RS15) go?
About 6.89 km/s, which is 24,800 km/h. One lap of the Earth takes it 127.7 minutes, so it goes around 11.3 times a day.
Can you see RADIO ROSTO (RS15) without a telescope?
Not with the naked eye. It needs binoculars or a telescope: magnitude +8.4 at its best, and the faintest stars the eye can see are about magnitude +6.
When was RADIO ROSTO (RS15) launched?
On December 26, 1994, from Baikonur, Kazakhstan.
With the app
Knowing where it is over the Earth is one thing. The app shows you where it is in your sky.
This page follows the satellite around the planet. The app works out when it passes over you, and leads you to it.
- Every pass over your exact location, for this satellite and 10,000+ more.
- An alert before it rises, so you are outside in time.
- An arrow in the camera view that leads you to the exact spot in the sky.
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