# Satellite Change Feed: New Objects, Decays, Manoeuvres (`arjs1000/satellite-catalogue-change-feed`) Actor

A daily feed of what changed in orbit: newly catalogued objects, re-entries, status changes and detected manoeuvres, each with owner, constellation and the evidence. Daily digests and the current catalogue too.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/arjs1000/satellite-catalogue-change-feed.md
- **Developed by:** [Arjun Shankar](https://apify.com/arjs1000) (community)
- **Categories:** Developer tools, News
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

Pay per event

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Satellite Change Feed: New Objects, Decays, Manoeuvres

A daily feed of what changed in orbit: newly catalogued objects, re-entries, status changes and
satellites that moved.

Each event names the object, its owner, type and constellation, and carries the evidence behind
it, so you can build alerts, charts or a newsroom tip sheet from the JSON. Ask for one
day's digest, a stream of events since your last run, or the current catalogue with orbit and
owner on every row.

Run it with the default input: 10 catalogue rows.

### Who uses it

- **Space journalists** get a daily list of new objects, re-entries and unexpected orbit
  changes.
- **Analysts** chart constellation behaviour, such as orbit-raising campaigns and deorbits, day
  by day.
- **Space situational awareness start-ups** build alerts on a ready-made change feed.

### Input

| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| `mode` | `snapshot` (default, the current catalogue), `events` or `digest` |
| `since` | Events or digests since a date, `YYYY-MM-DD`. Empty means the last 7 days |
| `sinceLastRun` | `true` returns only events newer than your last run. Best for schedules |
| `eventType` | `new_object`, `decayed`, `disappeared`, `status_change`, `manoeuvre`, `manoeuvre_summary` |
| `objectType` | `PAYLOAD`, `ROCKET BODY`, `DEBRIS` or `UNKNOWN` |
| `constellation` | e.g. `starlink`, `oneweb`, `kuiper`, `qianfan` |
| `maxItems` | Caps the rows, and so the cost |

### Output

Each event carries `event_id`, `date`, `type`, `norad_id`, `name`, `object_type`,
`constellation`, `confidence` and a `details` object with the evidence. Snapshot rows carry the
orbit (`perigee_km`, `apogee_km`, `inclination`, `period_min`, `regime`) plus `owner`, `state`
and `launch_date`. A digest gives one day's object counts, events by type and the top events.

A real manoeuvre detected on 8 October 2026, trimmed:

```json
{
  "event_id": 188,
  "date": "2026-10-08",
  "type": "manoeuvre",
  "norad_id": 69619,
  "name": "KUIPER-00554",
  "object_type": "PAYLOAD",
  "constellation": "kuiper",
  "confidence": "medium",
  "details": { "kind": "sma", "delta_sma_m": 4285, "regime": "LEO" }
}
```

### Pricing

Pay per result. See the Pricing tab for current rates; `maxItems` caps the rows and so the cost. A run that finds nothing charges nothing per item.

### FAQ

**How often does it update?** Daily. Each event says when it was detected.

**What does `confidence` mean?** How strong the evidence is: `high`, `medium` or `low`. The
`details` object shows the numbers behind it.

**Can I follow one constellation?** Yes. Set `constellation` and schedule `events` with
`sinceLastRun: true`; you pay for each event once.

Every row carries an `attribution` field; keep it if you republish. Runs record anonymous usage
counts only, never your inputs or results.

# Actor input Schema

## `mode` (type: `string`):

snapshot (default): the latest catalogue, one row per object. events: change events since a date (can be empty on a quiet day). digest: one summary per day (counts and top events).

## `since` (type: `string`):

Events: changes on or after this date (YYYY-MM-DD). Digest: first day to summarise. Empty = the last 7 days.

## `sinceLastRun` (type: `boolean`):

Modes events and digest only. Turn this on for scheduled runs. Each run returns only events or daily digests newer than the last run that had it on, so you never pay twice for the same item. The actor saves its place in a key-value store called satellite-catalogue-change-feed-cursor in your own Apify account. The first run has no saved place and uses the default window. A date in "Since" overrides the saved place for that run. A failed or aborted run does not move it.

## `cursorName` (type: `string`):

Used with "Only new since the last run". The name of the record that holds the saved place. Leave it empty and each mode and set of filters gets its own. Give two tasks the same name only if they should share one place.

## `date` (type: `string`):

Snapshot only: leave empty for the latest catalogue. Store runs serve the latest snapshot only; an older date fails with a clear message.

## `eventType` (type: `string`):

Events only. Empty = all.

## `objectType` (type: `string`):

Filter by object type. Empty = all.

## `constellation` (type: `string`):

Filter by constellation, lower case, up to 40 characters, e.g. starlink, oneweb, kuiper, qianfan, guowang, gps, galileo, beidou, glonass, iridium.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Stop after this many dataset items (each is a charged event). The form starts at 10 for a cheap first run; the API default is 1,000.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "mode": "snapshot",
  "sinceLastRun": false,
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `events` (type: `string`):

New objects, re-entries, status changes and manoeuvres since your date or last run.

## `digest` (type: `string`):

One row per day: what changed in orbit and how much.

## `snapshot` (type: `string`):

Tracked objects matching your filters, with orbit and status.

## `summary` (type: `string`):

What this run returned: mode, item count, data freshness and the cursor for your next run.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("arjs1000/satellite-catalogue-change-feed").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "maxItems": 10 }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("arjs1000/satellite-catalogue-change-feed").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call arjs1000/satellite-catalogue-change-feed --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,arjs1000/satellite-catalogue-change-feed"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/dIgIZjKaDv47Mku3l/builds/PX0eCy62W8S2LtUhy/openapi.json