NASA illustration of SCP-2276/1.

Item #: SCP-2276

Object Class: Keter

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-2276 instances are to be reprogrammed with modified software as they are discovered, to prevent transmission conflicts with other instances and reduce their radio-frequency footprint. See Document 2276-W for details.

Instances are to be logged in civilian databases as small asteroids of equivalent visual magnitude as appropriate, depending on location.

Where possible, instances in orbit of earth are to be de-orbited and any debris recovered; otherwise any available station-keeping fuel is to be reserved for averting collisions with legitimate civilian satellites.

SCP-2276 instances may be used for gathering scientific data, however a number of restrictions apply. Use by external researchers or agencies must be approved and requires an appropriate non-disclosure agreement. Note that data pertaining to other SCP objects may have additional restrictions beyond those for SCP-2276. Under no circumstances is the data gathered by SCP-2276 (other than SCP-2276/1) to be released to the public.

Research into orbital debris removal is to be given high priority for funding. Grants may also be given to groups outside the Foundation for research in this area.

Description: SCP-2276 is a class of artificial space satellites, orbiting various bodies in pairs. (Each SCP instance designation refers to one pair.) Each pair is an exact duplicate of the original Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites (designated SCP-2276/1) as they existed at 18:04 on June 11, 2002. SCP-2276/1 was originally launched by NASA on March 17, 2002.

Instances are functional and will respond to commands transmitted to them. However, transmissions must be aimed directly when commanding instances that have not yet been reprogrammed per 2276-W, to avoid accidentally commanding multiple instances at once.

Orbital plot showing all instances in orbit of Earth as of 2008-12-31.

New instances of SCP-2276 will spontaneously manifest in orbit around Earth or another body. The rate at which new instances appeared was initially around one per 8 months. The rate has increased over time since then - around one new instance per day in early 2016 - and is predicted to continue rising.

SCP-2276/3b during inspection, following recovery from orbit.

991 instances have been discovered to date1, 347 of which are not in orbit of Earth. Orbits are all circular with varying altitudes, and are isotropically distributed. A complete catalog of SCP-2276 instances is available in Addendum A.

SCP-2276/3a and b were recovered from orbit on April 22, 2004. Physical inspection at Area 15 revealed no inconsistencies, and no anomalous phenomena occurred during quarantine. SCP-2276/3 is currently in storage at Site 73.

A third satellite was launched into proximity of SCP-2276-1 on January 4th, 2006 to conduct visual inspections of the satellites. No discrepancies have been found between the SCP-2276/1 and the satellite plans to date.

A number of collisions occurred between SCP-2276 instances and other artificial satellites in 2007-2009, prompting the addition of the active collision avoidance program to the containment measures. This has significantly reduced the incident rate.

While the rate of incidents arising from collisions with SCP-2276 remains manageable at the present time, SCP-2276 will likely pose a significant problem for space activities in the future, and may lead to an ablation cascade event2 within the next decade if actions are not taken to avert it.

Date
Instance
Description

2007‑01‑11
SCP‑2276/45
Collision occurs disabling SCP-2276/45a, b and Chinese weather satellite FY-1C. Officially reported as anti-satellite missile test.

2008‑02‑21
SCP‑2276/38
Collision occurs disabling SCP-2276/38a, b and United States spy satellite USA-193. Officially reported as anti-satellite missile test.

2009‑02‑10
SCP‑2276/63
Collision occurs disabling SCP-2276/63b, communications satellite Iridium 33, and retired communications satellite Kosmos 2251. Officially reported as collision between Iridium 33 and Kosmos 2251.

2013‑12‑09
SCP‑2276/437
Collision occurs disabling SCP-2276/437a and damaging CBERS-3 launch vehicle during ascent. SCP-2276/437a reenters two days following this event.

2016‑03‑26
SCP‑2276/859
Collision occurs disabling SCP-2276/859a and Japanese x-ray telescope Hitomi. Media suppression ongoing.

Addendum A: Catalog of SCP-2276 Instances

A table of the discovery date and initial orbital elements of each SCP-2276 instance is available for research use. See document 2276-B for information on how to access up-to-date ephemeris data.

Download Catalog

Addendum B: Use of SCP-2276 in researching other anomalies

Due to its nature, there are a number of SCP-2276 instances uniquely situated to gather data on other anomalies and SCP objects. With a few exceptions, use of SCP-2276 data to facilitate this type of research is generally permitted with proper clearance.

Research Target: SCP-2886

SCP-2276 instances involved: 316

Description: SCP-2276 has been used to help measure the mass of SCP-2886. Due to the presence of only one instance, SCP-2276/316, the resolution has been too limited to provide a clear subsurface imagery, but research is ongoing.

Research Target: SCP-1812

SCP-2276 instances involved: 696, 794

Description: Knowledge of SCP-2276/696 and SCP-2276/794 is restricted to individuals with 3/1812 clearance. No attempt is to be made to contact or locate SCP-2276/696 or SCP-2276/794.

Research Target: SCP-736

SCP-2276 instances involved: 295, 366, 485, 661, 774, 919, 975

Description: SCP-2276 has been used to provide precise data on the alterations in the orbit of Iapetus caused by SCP-736. This data has allowed vastly enhanced precision in the associated orbital projections. Missions are underway to attempt to remove all SCP-2276 instances from the orbit of Iapetus to avoid provoking SCP-736 further.

Research Target: SCP-2362

SCP-2276 instances involved: 672, 711, 877, 891

Description: Instances in orbit of SCP-2362 and SCP-2362-like objects are being used to study the nature of this anomaly, and monitor them in case of activity. Note that most instances of SCP-2276 in orbit of SCP-2362 were destroyed by debris following event 2362-A.

Footnotes

1. as of 2016-08-03

2. Sometimes referred to as 'Kessler Syndrome', although use of that term is discouraged.