SatTracker 2.0 – Professional Ground Track and Visibility Analysis for Earth-Orbiting Satellites
SatTracker is designed for real-world prediction of Earth-orbiting satellite ground tracks. It is very accurate and, with fresh sets of orbital elements downloaded from within the application, it will keep that accuracy indefinitely. It provides ground tracks for multiple satellites, like some other applications, but unlike any others, it will compute visibility for multiple ground stations.
SatTracker has been used during real satellite operations at the European Space Operations Centre, ESOC, in Germany!
SatTracker: Professional Ground Track and Visibility Analysis for Earth-Orbiting Satellites
Designed for professionals and serious satellite enthusiasts, SatTracker provides precise, real-world prediction of satellite ground tracks and visibility — used during actual operations at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), Germany.
By combining the classic SGP4 orbital algorithms with regularly updated publicly-available TLEs, SatTracker delivers accurate Earth-orbiting satellite positions. Unlike typical satellite tracking apps, it goes far beyond basic map plots — offering full visibility analysis across multiple satellites and multiple ground stations simultaneously.
Key Features
🌍 Advanced Ground Track Mapping
• Displays real-time and simulated satellite positions and ground tracks.
• Supports both rectangular and dual polar (azimuthal) map projections.
• Shows sunlight, twilight, and night regions dynamically.
• Optionally overlays near real-time cloud cover (requires third-party subscription).
• Indicates the position of the South Atlantic Anomaly — important for spacecraft operations.
📡 Ground Station Visibility & Operations
• Computes satellite visibility from multiple ground stations, including mutual visibility across networks.
• Models true ground station horizon profiles for both transmit and receive paths.
• Includes a growing database of real-world ground stations — with horizon data, time zones, and antenna configurations.
• Supports commercial and GSaaS (Ground Station as a Service) networks, with extended band support (VHF, UHF, L-Band).
• Groups ground stations into logical sets for easier management.
🌌 Sky and Pass Views
• Sky View: Visualize satellites crossing the sky from a chosen ground station — with stars and constellations for context.
• Pass View: View elevation vs. time plots showing upcoming satellite passes.
• Includes sky shading to indicate time of day.
🕒 Time Control & Simulation
• Freely explore past or future satellite positions with interactive time adjustment.
• Supports full simulation of orbital dynamics across different timescales.
📊 Database Management
• Built-in support for managing thousands of satellites and ground stations.
• Tools for importing/exporting and migrating databases from older versions.
• Integrates commercial antenna profiles for ground station creation.
🌓 Celestial Features
• Tracks Sun and Moon positions, with current Moon phase.
• Optional display of constellation lines and star backgrounds in Sky View.
• Professional-Grade Functionality, Not a Game-Like Simulation
• SatTracker isn't a flashy 3D simulation — it's a tool built by and for professionals, especially those in mission control rooms who need operational clarity, not visual effects. It delivers what engineers demand: reliable visibility predictions, accurate ground track plots, and tools tailored to real-world satellite communications.
📘 Comprehensive User Manual
• Whether you're an engineer, student, or enthusiast, the expanded User Manual is a valuable guide to orbits, satellite tracking, TLEs, radio links, and how to get the best out of SatTracker.
SatTracker is available now. Designed for Apple Silicon, supports Retina displays, and includes dark mode for low-light operation environments.
For a full explanation of what SatTracker v2.0 can do (and a useful tutorial on satellites, orbits, TLEs, satellite radio links etc), please download the User Manual available here: