Catalog

Satellite catalog (SATCAT) metadata — information about tracked objects such as name, owner, launch details, and operational status.

GET /catalog/{norad_id}

Returns catalog metadata for a single object.

Parameters

Parameter	In	Type	Required	Description
norad_id	path	integer	Yes	NORAD catalog number

Example

curl -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_KEY" \
  https://orbital-data-api.davidhsu.cc/api/v1/catalog/25544

{
  "NORAD_CAT_ID": 25544,
  "OBJECT_NAME": "ISS (ZARYA)",
  "OBJECT_ID": "1998-067A",
  "OBJECT_TYPE": "PAYLOAD",
  "OPS_STATUS_CODE": "+",
  "OWNER": "ISS",
  "LAUNCH_DATE": "1998-11-20",
  "LAUNCH_SITE": "TTMTR",
  "DECAY_DATE": null,
  "PERIOD_MINUTES": 92.87,
  "INCLINATION_DEG": 51.64,
  "APOGEE_KM": 422.1,
  "PERIGEE_KM": 418.3
}

Response fields

Field	Type	Description
NORAD_CAT_ID	integer	NORAD catalog number
OBJECT_NAME	string	Common name
OBJECT_ID	string	International designator (launch year + piece)
OBJECT_TYPE	string	PAYLOAD, ROCKET BODY, DEBRIS, or UNKNOWN
OPS_STATUS_CODE	string	Operational status (+=active, -=inactive, P=partial, D=decayed, etc.)
OWNER	string	Owner/operator country or organization code
LAUNCH_DATE	date	Launch date
LAUNCH_SITE	string	Launch site code
DECAY_DATE	date or null	Reentry date (null if still in orbit)
PERIOD_MINUTES	number or null	Orbital period
INCLINATION_DEG	number or null	Orbital inclination
APOGEE_KM	number or null	Apogee altitude
PERIGEE_KM	number or null	Perigee altitude

---

GET /catalog

Search the satellite catalog.

Parameters

Parameter	In	Type	Required	Description
search	query	string	No	Search by object name (partial match)
owner	query	string	No	Owner/country code (e.g., US, CIS, PRC)
object_type	query	string	No	PAYLOAD, ROCKET_BODY, or DEBRIS
launch_year	query	integer	No	Filter by launch year
active_only	query	boolean	No	Only active objects (default: true)
page	query	integer	No	Page number (default: 1)
per_page	query	integer	No	Results per page (1–500, default: 100)

Example

Search for active Chinese payloads:

curl -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_KEY" \
  "https://orbital-data-api.davidhsu.cc/api/v1/catalog?owner=PRC&object_type=PAYLOAD&per_page=2"

{
  "data": [
    {
      "NORAD_CAT_ID": 48274,
      "OBJECT_NAME": "CSS (TIANHE)",
      "OBJECT_ID": "2021-035A",
      "OBJECT_TYPE": "PAYLOAD",
      "OPS_STATUS_CODE": "+",
      "OWNER": "PRC",
      "LAUNCH_DATE": "2021-04-29",
      "DECAY_DATE": null
    }
  ],
  "pagination": {
    "total": 312,
    "page": 1,
    "per_page": 2,
    "total_pages": 156,
    "next": "https://orbital-data-api.davidhsu.cc/api/v1/catalog?owner=PRC&object_type=PAYLOAD&per_page=2&page=2",
    "prev": null
  }
}