What is Orbit?

The sky is filled with movement, but most of us never notice it. Every second, satellites are silently passing over our heads—enabling GPS navigation, global communication, weather forecasting, scientific research, and so much more. Yet despite their critical role, they remain invisible to the everyday observer. We wanted to change that. Inspired by the growing role of satellite technology in daily life, we set out to create OrbitNC, a real-time satellite tracker specifically for North Carolina. With the rapid rise of satellite mega-constellations, growing concern over space debris, and increasing reliance on satellites for emergency response, having an accessible way to visualize their movement is more valuable than ever. Whether it’s for amateur astronomers, educators, space enthusiasts, or just the curious, OrbitNC makes satellite tracking intuitive, real-time, and region-specific, bringing space just a little closer to home.

Visualizing the Problem

Satellite Launches by Year

Our Tool

Orbit's key product comes from the Celestrack database which tracks Satellites. Out of the 10,000+ active satellites orbiting Earth currently, we can see how many of those satellites come over North Carolina, updating multiple times daily. This application is especially useful to space organizations launching satellites themselves. At the click of a mouse, a myriad of statistics and projections are available for any location in North Carolina for organizations to see. Most importantly, these companies can make sure their own satellite doesn't collide with another one based on its path. Satellite collisions, which is becoming more frequent of a problem, leads to so much space debris in Earth's Orbit. With this web application, we are able to minimize this issue and potentially end satellite collisions all in all.