Satellite Name Generator

Mission-ready names for satellites, probes and CubeSats

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Generate satellite names in the styles real space agencies use: uppercase mission acronyms, mythological and star names, tributes to scientists, Earth-observation and relay designators, and playful CubeSat names for school, sci-fi and game projects.

About satellite names

Real satellites are named in a handful of recognisable ways, and the names here follow those conventions. NASA and ESA love the backronym: a short, pronounceable word in capitals that can later be unpacked into a mission description (think of TESS, GOES or MAVEN), often a weather term, bird of prey or Greek word. Flagship observatories honour dead scientists and astronomers (Hubble, Chandra, Euclid, Roman), planetary missions borrow mythology (Juno, Artemis, Chang'e, Aditya), and Earth-observation satellites get descriptive names plus a number or letter block, such as Sentinel-2B or Landsat 9.

The list mixes all of those registers. You will find uppercase acronyms (ORBIS, KESTREL, PERIGEE), myth and star names from Greek, Norse, Egyptian, Hindu and Japanese sources, tributes to figures like Noether, Leavitt and Tsiolkovsky, descriptive Earth-watchers (Ice Shelf Watch, Methane Finder), relay constellations (Skymesh, Polar Relay), Latin and other-language names, and the deliberately small, funny names university teams give CubeSats (Shoebox One, Pipsqueak, Toaster Sat).

Names with a suffix such as -2, IIB or Prime signal a series; drop or change the number to fit your own mission. For fiction or a game, pair an acronym with an agency and an orbit and the name will sound like it came out of a real launch manifest.

How to choose satellite names

  • Acronyms are the most authentic style for agency missions: pick a short capitalised word, then work backwards to a phrase it can stand for (for example ARGUS = Atmospheric Radiance and Gas Upper-atmosphere Sounder).
  • Use mythology for planetary probes and scientist names for telescopes and observatories; that is the pattern NASA, ESA, JAXA and ISRO actually follow, so it reads as real.
  • Number a series the way agencies do: Sentinel-style hyphen plus number and block letter (Kestrel-3B), or Roman numerals for generations (Argus VII). Keep one format within a fleet.
  • CubeSats and student satellites can be playful and tiny-sounding (Pebble, Lunchbox Sat, Firefly), while commercial relay constellations suit link, mesh and beam words.
  • Check that the name is not already a flying or retired satellite; many short words are taken, and a quick search of the NSSDCA or Gunter's Space Page catalogue avoids confusion.

Frequently asked questions

How does NASA actually name its satellites?

Usually by acronym or backronym (TESS, GOES, SMAP), by mythology for planetary missions (Juno, Artemis), by honouring scientists for observatories (Hubble, Webb, Roman) or by descriptive series names with numbers (Landsat 9, GOES-18). Some missions are renamed after launch, which is why proposal names and flight names can differ.

Can I use these names for a Kerbal Space Program, Stellaris or sci-fi satellite?

Yes. The uppercase acronyms and numbered series names sound right for a realistic near-future setting, the myth and Latin names suit more dramatic sci-fi, and the CubeSat names work for small probes and sensor drones in any game.

What is the difference between a satellite, a probe and an orbiter?

A satellite orbits a body; Earth-orbiting craft are what most people mean by the word. A probe travels away from Earth to study another object, and becomes an orbiter if it enters orbit around it, a lander if it touches down. The naming conventions overlap, so the names here fit all three.

Do satellite names need to be unique?

Officially each spacecraft gets an international designator and catalogue number, so names can repeat; in practice agencies avoid reusing a live mission's name. For a school or competition CubeSat, check existing CubeSat lists so your team is not confused with an older one.

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All 500 satellite names

This is the complete list the generator above draws its random batches from, sorted A to Z and grouped by first letter.

Plain text, one name per line.

A: 38 names

  • Aakash
  • ACHERNAR
  • Acorn
  • ACRUX
  • Aditi
  • Aegir
  • AEGIS-2
  • Aerosol Hunter
  • Aestus
  • Agnesi
  • Agni
  • ALBATROSS
  • ALBEDO
  • ALBIREO
  • ALCYONE
  • ALDEBARAN
  • ALGOL
  • ALTAIR
  • Amanecer
  • Amekaze
  • Amphitrite
  • ANTARES
  • APOGEE
  • Aqua Vitae
  • ARCTURUS
  • ARGUS
  • Argus VII
  • Aristarchus Lamp
  • Asteria
  • Asteroid Belt Ranger
  • ASTRAEA
  • Astronomical Twilight
  • Atalaya
  • ATLAS
  • ATOLL
  • Aurorix
  • Austral
  • AZIMUTH

B: 25 names

  • Babbage
  • Bastet
  • Beamline
  • Belvedere
  • Berkut
  • Bessel
  • Biosphere Beacon
  • Blip
  • Blue Hour
  • Blue Marble Two
  • Blue Moon
  • Bohr
  • Boole
  • BORA
  • BOREAS
  • Bragi
  • Brahe
  • Breadbox Two
  • Bricksat
  • Brihaspati
  • Broadbeam
  • Brown Cloud Tracker
  • Brown Dwarf Finder
  • Bumblebee
  • Burbidge

C: 33 names

  • Caelestis
  • Caelum
  • CAIRN
  • Callisto Keeper
  • CALYPSO
  • CANOPUS
  • Canopy Counter
  • CARACAL
  • Carbon Compass
  • Carson
  • Cavendish
  • Ceres Keeper
  • CHINOOK
  • CIRRUS-3
  • Cislunar Courier
  • Civil Dawn
  • Clavius Sentinel
  • Cloudlink
  • Coastline Keeper
  • Coeus
  • Comet Tail Tracker
  • CONDOR
  • Copernicus Eye
  • CORMORANT
  • CORVID
  • Cosmic Dawn Probe
  • Courier
  • Cricket
  • Crop Circle One
  • Crown Relay
  • Cubelet
  • Curie
  • Custos

D: 11 names

  • Dandelion
  • Delta Mapper
  • DENEB
  • Dhruv
  • Dirac
  • Doppler
  • Draupnir
  • Drishti
  • Drought Monitor
  • Dust Mote
  • Dust Storm Sentinel

E: 22 names

  • Earth Echo
  • Earthshine
  • Earthwatch
  • ECLIPTIC
  • EGRET
  • Ehecatl
  • Eirene
  • ELECTRA
  • Ember Sat
  • Emissary
  • Enceladus Plume Chaser
  • Endurance
  • Envoy
  • Epimetheus
  • EQUINOX
  • Erebus
  • ESTUARY
  • Euler
  • Eurus
  • Eurybia
  • Exoplanet Finder
  • Exosphere Explorer

F: 21 names

  • Faraday
  • Farside Relay
  • Farsight
  • Femtosat Alpha
  • Feynman
  • Fidelis
  • Firefly
  • Fishing Fleet Watch
  • FJORD
  • Fleming
  • Flicker
  • Flood Sentinel
  • Flumen
  • FOMALHAUT
  • ForestSat
  • Forseti
  • Fortuna
  • Franklin
  • Freyja
  • Fujin
  • Fulgur

G: 27 names

  • Gagarin
  • Gaia Echo
  • Galatea
  • Galaxy Census
  • Gamma Ray Sentry
  • GANNET
  • Ganymede Glint
  • Gauss
  • Geoid Surveyor
  • GLACIER
  • Glacier Pulse
  • Glacies
  • Glaucus
  • Glimmer
  • Globe Glance
  • Glowworm
  • Gluon
  • GNOMON
  • Goddard
  • Golden Hour
  • Gravitational Wave Listener
  • Gravity Mapper Two
  • Great Red Eye
  • Green Belt Sentinel
  • Grey Sky Sounder
  • Guardian
  • Gungnir

H: 29 names

  • Habitable Zone Scout
  • Hadron
  • HALCYON
  • Halley
  • HALO
  • Harbor Sentinel
  • HARMATTAN
  • Harmonia
  • Harrier-7
  • Hathor
  • Heat Island Imager
  • Heliopause Herald
  • HELIOS
  • Hellas Relay
  • Hemera
  • Herald
  • Hertz
  • Hesperus Orbiter
  • Highband
  • Hive-12
  • Homeworld Watch
  • Hooke
  • Hopper
  • Horus
  • Hoshikaze
  • Hou Yi
  • Hummingbird
  • Hunter's Moon
  • Hypatia

I: 6 names

  • Icarus Return
  • Ice Shelf Watch
  • Idunn
  • Inti
  • Io Watcher
  • Ionosphere Imager

J: 1 name

  • Jyoti

K: 8 names

  • Kelp Forest Finder
  • Kepler Ridge
  • KESTREL
  • Khonsu
  • Kiran
  • Kovalevskaya
  • Kronos
  • Kuiper Courier

L: 24 names

  • Ladybug
  • Lagrange
  • LANTERN
  • Laplace
  • Lattice-27
  • Leavitt
  • Lemaître
  • Leto
  • LEVANT
  • Libertas
  • LIBRATION
  • Libration Point One
  • Lightning Bug
  • Lightning Mapper
  • Lodestone
  • Lovelace
  • Lucero
  • LUMEN
  • Luminara
  • Lunar Beacon
  • Lunaris
  • Lunchbox Sat
  • Lux Aeterna
  • LYNX

M: 36 names

  • Maat
  • Magnetar Monitor
  • Magnetopause Probe
  • MAIA
  • Mama Quilla
  • Mani
  • Marble
  • Mars Polar Lantern
  • Matchbox Orbiter
  • Matchstick
  • Maury
  • Maxwell
  • Meitner
  • Mercury Furnace Probe
  • MERIDIAN
  • MERLIN
  • MEROPE
  • MESA
  • Mesh-1
  • Messier
  • Methane Finder
  • Metis
  • Microwave Sky Surveyor
  • Mimas Mapper
  • Mimir
  • Minnow
  • MIRA
  • Mirador
  • MISTRAL
  • Mitchell
  • Mitra
  • Mjolnir
  • MONSOON
  • Moonwake
  • Mote
  • Muninn

N: 15 names

  • Nabha
  • Nakshatra
  • Nanoscout
  • Nemesis
  • Nereus
  • Netra
  • Neutrino
  • Newton
  • Night Lights Mapper
  • Niulang
  • Noether
  • Northstar 4
  • Nubes
  • Nuwa
  • Nyx

O: 15 names

  • OCCULTATION
  • Ocean Mirror
  • Oceanus
  • OCELOT
  • Ogonyok
  • Olympus Watcher
  • Oort Outrider
  • Orbital Post
  • Orbitalis
  • Orbitline
  • Origami
  • ORRERY
  • OSPREY-2
  • Overwatch One
  • Ozone Ranger

P: 39 names

  • Pallas
  • Panorama
  • Paper Crane
  • PARALLAX
  • Pax Orbita
  • Payne
  • Pebble
  • PENUMBRA
  • PEREGRINE
  • Perennis
  • PERIGEE
  • Permafrost Probe
  • Persistence
  • PETREL
  • Phare
  • PHAROS
  • Phobos Shadow
  • Phoebe
  • Phosphorus
  • Photon
  • Picoprobe
  • Pipsqueak
  • Pixie Sat
  • Planet Pulse
  • Plato Basin
  • PLOVER
  • Pluto Postcard
  • Pocket Rocket
  • Polar Lantern
  • Polar Night
  • Polar Relay
  • Pontus
  • Prakash
  • PRISM
  • Profundus
  • Providence
  • Proxima
  • Prudentia
  • Pulsar Timing Probe

Q: 1 name

  • Quasar Quest

R: 10 names

  • Radio Sky Ear
  • Reconnaissance One
  • Red Dwarf Watcher
  • Reef Pulse
  • REGULUS
  • Rendezvous
  • Riemann
  • RIGEL
  • Road Network Recorder
  • Rock Finder Two

S: 58 names

  • Sagan
  • Sandgrain
  • SANDPIPER
  • Sapientia
  • Saturn Ring Ranger
  • Scientia
  • Sea Ice Sentinel
  • Sedna Seeker
  • SELENE
  • Selene Gateway
  • Sentinelle
  • Septentrio
  • Serenity Link
  • Seshat
  • SEXTANT
  • Ship Track Sentinel
  • Shoebox One
  • Shoemaker
  • Shu
  • Sidera
  • Silver Lining Sat
  • SIROCCO
  • Skadi
  • SKUA
  • Skuld
  • Skybridge-4
  • Skyline Relay
  • Skymesh
  • Skyweave
  • Sleipnir
  • Snowline Surveyor
  • Snowpack Scout
  • Soil Moisture Sounder
  • Sokol-2
  • Solaria
  • SOLSTICE
  • Somerville
  • Sopdet
  • Sorayume
  • Spark Sat
  • Sparrow
  • Speck
  • SPECTRA
  • Specula
  • SPICA
  • Sprite One
  • Starlattice
  • Starlight Spectrometer
  • STARLING
  • Stellar Nursery Scout
  • STEPPE
  • Stormwatch
  • STRATUS
  • Strizh
  • Sunward
  • Supernova Sentinel
  • Surya
  • SYZYGY

T: 37 names

  • Taara
  • Tachyon
  • TALOS
  • Teacup One
  • Tefnut
  • TEMPEST
  • Tereshkova
  • Terminator Tracker
  • Tessellate
  • Tethys
  • Thalassa
  • Tharp
  • Tharsis Imager
  • Theia
  • Thermosphere Sounder
  • Thetis
  • Thimble
  • Thoth
  • Thumbelina
  • Thunderhead Tracker
  • Tidewatch III
  • Tin Can Orbiter
  • Tinsley
  • Tiny Tim
  • Tlaloc
  • Toaster Sat
  • Tombaugh
  • TRADEWIND
  • Trailblazer
  • Transit Hunter
  • Trojan Hunter
  • Tsukikage
  • Tsukuyomi
  • Tumbleweed
  • Turing
  • Twinkle
  • Tycho Watch

U: 7 names

  • Ullr
  • Ultima
  • Ultra Nova
  • Ultraviolet Eye
  • UMBRA
  • Urban Sprawl Scanner
  • Ushas

V: 22 names

  • Valles Scout
  • Varuna
  • Vaughan
  • Vayu
  • VEGA-2
  • Veilleur
  • Ventus
  • Venus Veil
  • Verdandi
  • Veritas Orbital
  • VESPER
  • Vesperis
  • Vesta Vantage
  • Vigil
  • Vigilans
  • Viracocha
  • Voile
  • Volcano Plume Watcher
  • Volna
  • Vox Caeli
  • Voxel
  • Vyom

W: 8 names

  • Wadjet
  • Watchtower
  • Wayfinder
  • Wegener
  • WHIMBREL
  • Wildfire Eye
  • Wisp
  • WREN

X: 1 name

  • X-Ray Lookout

Y: 1 name

  • Yggdrasil

Z: 5 names

  • ZENITH
  • ZEPHYR-1
  • Zephyrus
  • Zhinu
  • Zorya