Space-Track.org
The primary source of TLEs. CelesTrak and everyone else redistribute from here.
- Source
- https://www.space-track.org/documentation
- Access
- Free account required. Log in via POST, then query. Rate limits enforced (roughly 30 requests/min, 300/hour).
- Format
- TLE, 3LE, JSON, CSV, XML, KVN
Schema
| Field | Type | Note |
|---|---|---|
| class/gp | endpoint | Current general perturbations elements, same schema as OMM |
| class/gp_history | endpoint | Every historical element set |
| class/satcat | endpoint | Catalog metadata: launch date, country, decay, RCS size |
| class/decay | endpoint | Predicted re-entries |
| CREATION_DATE, TLE_LINE1, TLE_LINE2 | extra | Fields on gp not in CelesTrak output |
Example
POST https://www.space-track.org/ajaxauth/login identity=…&password=… GET https://www.space-track.org/basicspacedata/query/class/gp/NORAD_CAT_ID/27607/format/tle
Gotchas
- Do not poll. Cache and honor their limits or the account gets locked.
- For hobby use CelesTrak is the better front door.