TransitSatellite trademark — Track, Predict, Explore
WeatherGEOTracked liveResearch draft

HIMAWARI-8

Himawari-8 is Japan's advanced geostationary meteorological satellite, launched in 2014. Its high-frequency multispectral imaging significantly improved weather monitoring across the Asia-Pacific region.

Track live

Object identity

NORAD ID
40267
COSPAR ID
2014-060A
Operator
Not listed
Country
Not listed
Launch date
Not listed

Immediate discovery

Why this satellite matters

Because a geostationary satellite remains over the same region, meteorologists can turn successive images into time series that reveal cloud motion, storm development and atmospheric dynamics.

Understanding the mission

Science and engineering ideas

Because a geostationary satellite remains over the same region, meteorologists can turn successive images into time series that reveal cloud motion, storm development and atmospheric dynamics.

Mission

Mission and purpose

Weather spacecraft carry instruments that observe Earth and its atmosphere in visible, infrared, microwave, or other wavelengths. Different orbits provide either repeated regional views or broad global coverage.

  • Because a geostationary satellite remains over the same region, meteorologists can turn successive images into time series that reveal cloud motion, storm development and atmospheric dynamics.

Design

Engineering

Because a geostationary satellite remains over the same region, meteorologists can turn successive images into time series that reveal cloud motion, storm development and atmospheric dynamics.

Real orbital values

The mathematics

The current two-line element set reports approximately 1.0027 revolutions per day. Dividing 1,440 minutes by that value gives an estimated orbital period of 1,436.1 minutes.

Period

1,436.1 min

Representative speed

11,069 km/h

Representative altitude

35,793 km

Inclination

0°

These are representative calculations derived from current orbital elements, not fixed physical specifications. Altitude and speed change around an elliptical orbit, and predictions change as new orbital elements are published.

Launch record

Launch and deployment

Himawari-8 launched on 7 October 2014 aboard an H-IIA from Tanegashima Space Center.

TransitSatellite does not estimate historical launch weather. Temperature, clouds, wind, holds, and scrub reasons will appear only when supported by traceable historical sources.

Orbit

GEO orbit explained

A geosynchronous satellite takes about one sidereal day to orbit Earth. A circular equatorial geostationary satellite appears to remain near one longitude in the sky.

GEO is valuable when continuous coverage of a broad region matters, although the great distance increases signal delay and reduces image detail compared with lower orbits.

Live TransitSatellite experience

See HIMAWARI-8 moving now

Open the live tracker to view its current calculated position, trajectory, orbital information, visibility tools, and Save and Share controls.

Track this satellite

Learning

Questions to explore

  • Why can infrared instruments observe clouds at night?
  • What is the difference between continuous regional coverage and global coverage?

Evidence

Sources and data notes

Current identity and orbital elements come from CelesTrak’s public GP data. Calculated orbit values are derived from the current TLE and may change after catalog updates. Mission-history claims are added separately and require authoritative sources.

Catalog updated

Sep 20, 2026, 8:28 AM UTC

Story review

1970-01-01T00:00:00.000Z