Validation
Every day, every object that both CelesTrak and GCAT describe is compared field by field, wherever both give a comparable value. Where they disagree, the record is listed below with both values. A fixed stratified sample is also checked weekly against a third, independent source.
Last computed 2026-11-05.
Do the two catalogues agree?
| Field | Objects compared | Agree | Open disagreements |
|---|---|---|---|
| What the object is | 61,926 | 99.7% | 168 |
| Launch date (within a day) | 70,586 | 99.1% | 650 |
| Still in orbit or re-entered | 66,172 | 99.7% | 176 |
| Re-entry date (within a day) | 32,966 | 94.2% | 1,903 |
| Working or not | 53,892 | 99.0% | 542 |
Independent check against Wikidata
A sample of 379 objects, drawn once from 48 groups (object type, orbit, launch era) by a fixed rule, so nobody picks easy cases. Each is looked up in Wikidata by its NORAD number and its dates compared with both catalogues. Drawn 2026-11-05.
| Field | Values found in Wikidata | CelesTrak agrees | GCAT agrees | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Re-entry date (within a day) | 6 | 100.0% (6/6) | 75.0% (3/4) | 2026-11-05 |
| Launch date (within a day) | 146 | 98.6% (144/146) | 100.0% (146/146) | 2026-11-05 |
Current disagreements
The newest 60. 0 earlier disagreements have since been resolved or left the comparison, and are kept as history.
| Object | Field | CelesTrak says | GCAT says | First seen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NVS-03 (IRNSS-1L)101228 | Working or not | Working | Not working | 2026-11-05 |
| USA 32 DEB101047 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| USA 32 DEB101042 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| USA 32 DEB101041 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| USA 32 DEB101040 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| USA 32 DEB101038 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| USA 32 DEB101037 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| SL-4 R/B100713 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT F100614 | What the object is | PAY | R2 | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT B100367 | What the object is | PAY | R2 | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT D100146 | Launch date (within a day) | 2026-07-23 | 2026-10-23 | 2026-11-05 |
| AAGAMAN OBJECT C100082 | What the object is | PAY | R4 | 2026-11-05 |
| ISS OBJECT YQ69799 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2026-04-11 | 2026-11-05 |
| ISS OBJECT YP69798 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2026-04-11 | 2026-11-05 |
| ISS OBJECT YN69797 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2026-04-11 | 2026-11-05 |
| ISS OBJECT YM69796 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2026-04-11 | 2026-11-05 |
| PROVES-ELECTRA69795 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2026-04-11 | 2026-11-05 |
| HUCSAT69794 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2026-04-11 | 2026-11-05 |
| STARLINK-34343 DEB69730 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT G69676 | What the object is | PAY | D X | 2026-11-05 |
| CZ-2F DEB69673 | What the object is | DEB | P | 2026-11-05 |
| HOKUSHIN-169648 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2026-04-11 | 2026-11-05 |
| CENTISPACE-1 GROUP 05 OBJECT J69636 | Working or not | Working | Not working | 2026-11-05 |
| HORN-R69507 | Working or not | Working | Not working | 2026-11-05 |
| ISS DEB69324 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2024-02-15 | 2026-11-05 |
| ISS DEB [WINDOW CLEANER BUNDLE]69237 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2023-08-23 | 2026-11-05 |
| DRISHTI69010 | Working or not | Working | Not working | 2026-11-05 |
| MAGNARO-II68798 | Working or not | Working | Not working | 2026-11-05 |
| ICPS68655 | What the object is | PAY | R3 | 2026-11-05 |
| STP-S29A OBJECT E68631 | What the object is | PAY | R4 | 2026-11-05 |
| SL-4 R/B68537 | What the object is | R/B | P A | 2026-11-05 |
| HMU-SAT267688 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-10-26 | 2026-11-05 |
| LEOPARD67687 | Still in orbit or re-entered | re-entered | in orbit | 2026-11-05 |
| LEOPARD67687 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-10-26 | 2026-11-05 |
| LEOPARD67687 | Working or not | Re-entered | Working | 2026-11-05 |
| UITMSAT-267686 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-10-26 | 2026-11-05 |
| GXIBA-167685 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-10-26 | 2026-11-05 |
| CORAL67684 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-10-26 | 2026-11-05 |
| KNACKSAT-267683 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-10-26 | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT D67251 | Working or not | Working | Not working | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT C67250 | What the object is | PAY | D X ? | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT A67248 | What the object is | PAY | R4 ? | 2026-11-05 |
| CZ-12A R/B67231 | What the object is | R/B | P AD | 2026-11-05 |
| SILVERSAT66909 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-09-14 | 2026-11-05 |
| ALPHA CUBESAT66908 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-09-14 | 2026-11-05 |
| DUPLEX66906 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-09-14 | 2026-11-05 |
| ZHUQUE-3 R/B66877 | What the object is | R/B | P A | 2026-11-05 |
| FLOCK 4H-1166714 | Working or not | Not working | Working | 2026-11-05 |
| NEW GLENN R/B66453 | What the object is | R/B | P A---U | 2026-11-05 |
| CZ-11 DEB66377 | What the object is | DEB | R4 | 2026-11-05 |
| SHIYAN-32 0166376 | Working or not | Not working | Working | 2026-11-05 |
| STARLINK-3535266177 | Working or not | Not working | Working | 2026-11-05 |
| CZ-5 R/B66143 | Re-entry date (within a day) | 2026-06-07 | 2026-06-09 | 2026-11-05 |
| HRC MONOBLOCK CAMERA66052 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2013-11-25 | 2026-11-05 |
| QIANFAN-10166043 | Working or not | Working | Not working | 2026-11-05 |
| BOTAN65943 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-09-14 | 2026-11-05 |
| E-KAGAKU-165942 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-09-14 | 2026-11-05 |
| YOTSUBA-KULOVER65941 | Launch date (within a day) | 1998-11-20 | 2025-09-14 | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT F65790 | What the object is | PAY | D X | 2026-11-05 |
| OBJECT E65789 | What the object is | PAY | D X | 2026-11-05 |
What this does and does not show
- Agreement is not proof: two catalogues can repeat the same upstream mistake. That is why the sample is checked against a third source.
- A disagreement is not an error in either source until someone checks; it is a record worth a closer look, and every one is listed.
- Classification differences that are a matter of scheme, such as GCAT counting components and non-standard payloads separately, are left out of the object type comparison.
- The sample has not yet been reviewed by hand. The earlier manual spot check is on the methodology page with its date. /methodology
- First seen is the day OrbitalWiki first saw a disagreement. Everything found on the first run, 2026-11-05, carries that date, however long it existed before.