Satellite Pass Planner
Find satellite passes above your location using TLE data. See sky paths and estimated light conditions at each peak.
When will a satellite pass above my location?
Supply TLE elements and your observer coordinates, then choose a prediction window and minimum elevation. Review rise, peak and set times, azimuths, peak elevation, range and sampled sky paths. Filter passes whose peak has a dark observer and a sunlit satellite, then export a calendar. Optical conditions at peak do not guarantee that a satellite will be visible.
Follow an orbit. Plan a pass.
Your elements. Your location. A clear view of the prediction.
The example is a historical Vanguard verification set from June 2000. For a present-day prediction, supply fresh orbital elements and update the start time.
Enter times as UTC, for example 2026-10-01T00:00:00Z. Display zone uses names such as America/Toronto. Latitude is positive north; longitude is positive east.
Your chart and event list will appear here.
Three simple steps
How to use Satellite Pass Planner
Choose an observer location, UTC time range and display time zone.
Calculate, explore the results and inspect event details.
Save your settings and download a calendar or data report.
Common questions
Good to know
Understand the result.
Keep the original.
Is this tool free, and are my files uploaded?
This tool is free with no account required. The work happens in your browser. Your input and files are not sent to a processing server.
What are the limits and details?
Calculations run locally in a cancellable browser worker. Terrain, clouds and weather are not modelled. Times use UTC inputs and your chosen IANA zone for display. Save a project file to keep your settings. No live TLE feed is fetched. Fresh orbital elements are essential: drag and manoeuvres can invalidate predictions. The bundled example is historical.
Up to five TLEs, 5,000 input characters, 168 hours and 25,000 output samples. Predictions must stay within 30 days of each element epoch. At most 500 passes. Detection uses 30-second steps and can miss brief grazing passes.