The OneWeb Constellation
OneWeb is a low-Earth-orbit broadband network built on a very different bet from Starlink: far fewer satellites, flying much higher, in polar orbits that cover the far north and south first. AstroSat tracks the fleet live.
The numbers right now
As of August 3, 2026, AstroSat is tracking 654 satellites in this constellation — about 4% of every active satellite currently tracked, out of 18,436 active satellites in total.
This is a live catalogue count, not a fixed design figure: it includes retired and spare satellites that are still in orbit and still being tracked, which is why it can differ from the “official” constellation size. Refreshed automatically from Space-Track every two hours.
How OneWeb differs from Starlink
Nearly twice as high
OneWeb flies at about 1,200 km against Starlink's roughly 550 km. Each satellite therefore sees far more of the planet, which is how the network works with hundreds rather than thousands.
Polar orbits first
The fleet uses near-polar orbits at 87.9° inclination, so coverage reached high latitudes early — the places most poorly served by traditional geostationary internet.
Sold to operators, not to you
OneWeb largely sells capacity wholesale to telecoms, governments, airlines and maritime operators rather than shipping dishes to households.
Harder to spot
At 1,200 km OneWeb satellites are dimmer than Starlink and never form the bright "train" of a fresh Starlink launch, so they are a much less obvious naked-eye target.
OneWeb's history is unusually turbulent for an operating constellation: the company filed for bankruptcy in 2020, was rescued by the UK government and Bharti Global, lost a batch of satellites stranded in Kazakhstan after the invasion of Ukraine ended its Soyuz launch arrangement, and completed its first-generation constellation using SpaceX and ISRO rockets — its direct competitor among them. It has since merged with Eutelsat. The technical trade-off it represents is genuinely interesting: a higher orbit means fewer satellites and less launch cost, but a longer signal round-trip and less capacity per area than a dense low shell. Both approaches now fly at the same time, which makes the coming years a fairly direct test of which bet was right.
Frequently asked questions
How many OneWeb satellites are in orbit?
Several hundred — far fewer than Starlink by design, because each one flies higher and covers more ground. The live count on this page is from the tracked catalogue.
How high do OneWeb satellites orbit?
About 1,200 km, roughly twice Starlink's operational altitude, in near-polar orbits inclined 87.9°.
Can I get OneWeb internet at home?
Generally no. OneWeb sells capacity mostly to telecom operators, governments, airlines and shipping rather than direct to households, so access usually comes through a business or a local provider.
Can you see OneWeb satellites?
They are much harder to see than Starlink. The higher orbit makes them fainter and they do not form the bright chain of lights that follows a fresh Starlink launch.