Where the orbits come from
Satellites do not broadcast their position the way aircraft do. Instead, ground radar and optical networks measure their orbits, and the results are published as two-line element sets (TLEs) — a compact description of an orbit at a specific moment. CelesTrak distributes these publicly.
God's Eye View pulls current TLEs and propagates them forward in your browser, so each satellite moves along its real orbital path in real time rather than following a canned animation. Because orbits decay and get adjusted, TLE-derived positions drift slightly between updates — fine for watching a pass, not a substitute for mission-grade ephemeris.
Finding the ISS
The International Space Station circles the Earth roughly every 92 minutes at about 400 km, which makes it the easiest object on the globe to follow. Turn on the Satellites layer, search for the ISS, and lock the camera to it. Zoom out and you can watch its ground track sweep across successive continents; zoom in and you are riding above the terminator as it crosses into night.
If you want to know when it passes over your own location, line up the ISS ground track with your city marker and read the approach.
Seeing the Starlink shells
Starlink is the clearest demonstration of what a constellation actually looks like. Rather than scattered dots, the satellites form orbital planes — evenly spaced strings of spacecraft sharing an inclination, with successive planes rotated around the Earth. On a flat map this structure is invisible. On a globe it snaps into focus immediately, and you can see why coverage improves as more planes fill in.
Honest limits
838 objects is a curated selection, not the full catalogue of roughly 30,000+ tracked objects including debris. Rendering everything would bury the interesting satellites and punish your GPU.
Positions are propagated from the most recent published elements. For a satellite that recently manoeuvred, expect a small offset until fresh elements are published.
Common questions
Can I track the ISS live here?
Yes. The International Space Station is included in the satellite layer and can be selected and camera-tracked in real time.
Does it show Starlink satellites?
Yes. Starlink satellites are part of the 838+ tracked objects, and the constellation's orbital planes are visible as distinct strings around the globe.
How accurate are the satellite positions?
Positions are propagated from CelesTrak two-line element sets. That is accurate enough to watch passes and understand orbital geometry, but it drifts slightly between element updates and is not mission-grade.
Do I need an account or API key?
No. The satellite layer works with no signup and no key.
Why not show all 30,000 tracked objects?
Most of those are debris. Rendering the full catalogue would obscure the satellites people actually want to see and slow the globe down considerably.
Open the globe
No signup, no installation. It loads in your browser and starts streaming.
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