# Satellite Position Scraper: Live ISS Tracking (`naimurhasanrwd/wheretheiss-satellite-scraper`) Actor

Pull the live position, altitude and velocity of the ISS and other tracked satellites via the public Where the ISS at? API. No login, no proxy, no browser.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/naimurhasanrwd/wheretheiss-satellite-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Naimur Hasan](https://apify.com/naimurhasanrwd) (community)
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

Pay per usage

This Actor is paid per platform usage. The Actor is free to use, and you only pay for the Apify platform usage, which gets cheaper the higher subscription plan you have.

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

## 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 Position Scraper

Pulls the live position of the ISS and other tracked satellites through the
public Where the ISS at? API. No login, no proxy, no browser.

### Input

| Field | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| `satelliteIds` | array | Required. NORAD catalog IDs. Default `["25544"]` (the ISS). |
| `units` | string | `kilometers` | `miles`. Default `kilometers`. |

### Output

One row per satellite: `satelliteId`, `name`, `latitude`, `longitude`,
`altitude`, `velocity`, `footprint`, `visibility`, `solarLatitude`,
`solarLongitude`, `units`, `observedAt`.

### Notes

- Each run captures a single instant. The ISS moves roughly 7.6 km every
  second, so two runs a minute apart describe positions about 450 km apart —
  schedule the Actor if you want a track rather than a point.
- `altitude`, `velocity` and `footprint` are all expressed in whichever
  `units` was requested, which is why the row carries `units` rather than
  baking it into the field names.
- `visibility` reports whether the satellite is in daylight, eclipsed or in
  the visible-from-ground window — it describes the satellite, not the
  observer's sky.

# Actor input Schema

## `satelliteIds` (type: `array`):

NORAD catalog IDs to track. 25544 is the ISS, which is the only one the API currently carries.

## `units` (type: `string`):

Units for altitude, velocity and ground footprint

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "satelliteIds": [
    "25544"
  ],
  "units": "kilometers"
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `items` (type: `string`):

Every satellite position the run captured.

# 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 = {
    "satelliteIds": [
        "25544"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("naimurhasanrwd/wheretheiss-satellite-scraper").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 = { "satelliteIds": ["25544"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("naimurhasanrwd/wheretheiss-satellite-scraper").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 '{
  "satelliteIds": [
    "25544"
  ]
}' |
apify call naimurhasanrwd/wheretheiss-satellite-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,naimurhasanrwd/wheretheiss-satellite-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

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/PJpAVTnxhLQqxDRSe/builds/A6b89dV3WjQnD6XCA/openapi.json