ISS Location — Free International Space Station Location API (No Key)

TL;DR

The Open Notify ISS Location API provides real-time position data for the International Space Station. Each request returns the current latitude, longitude, altitude, velocity, and timestamp. The ISS orbits Earth approximately every 90 minutes at about 28,000 km/h. JSON format, no API key, no rate limits. Perfect for satellite tracking apps, educational astronomy tools, and real-time position visualizations on maps.

Quick start: https://api.open-notify.org/iss-now.json

No API key needed — just make a request!

How to Use This API

1. Get Current ISS Position

https://api.open-notify.org/iss-now.json

2. JavaScript — Show ISS on Map

fetch('https://api.open-notify.org/iss-now.json')
  .then(r => r.json())
  .then(data => {
    const { latitude, longitude } = data.iss_position;
    const timestamp = new Date(data.timestamp * 1000);
    console.log(`ISS Position @ ${timestamp.toLocaleTimeString()}`);
    console.log(`Latitude: ${latitude}°`);
    console.log(`Longitude: ${longitude}°`);
    console.log(`Map: https://www.openstreetmap.org/?mlat=${latitude}&mlon=${longitude}`);
  });

3. Python — Track ISS Over Time

import requests
import time

print("Tracking ISS for 30 seconds...")
for i in range(6):
    data = requests.get(
        'https://api.open-notify.org/iss-now.json'
    ).json()
    pos = data['iss_position']
    ts = time.strftime('%H:%M:%S', time.gmtime(data['timestamp']))
    print(f"[{ts}] Lat: {pos['latitude']:>7.2f}, "
          f"Lon: {pos['longitude']:>7.2f}")
    time.sleep(5)

ISS now: https://api.open-notify.org/iss-now.json

Try This URL Now

Frequently Asked Questions

What position data is returned?: Latitude, longitude (both decimal degrees), timestamp (Unix epoch), and the ISS message ID. Altitude and velocity may be included depending on the data source.
How accurate is the position?: Position data comes from NASA's real-time tracking systems and is accurate to within a few kilometers. The ISS travels at ~7.66 km/s, so position changes rapidly.
How often should I poll the API?: Every 5-10 seconds is sufficient. The ISS moves about 1° of latitude/longitude every 10 seconds, so frequent polling is not needed for most applications.
Can I get the number of people on the ISS?: The same API has an /astros.json endpoint that lists crew members currently aboard the ISS and their spacecraft.
Is there a rate limit?: Open Notify is a free public API with generous rate limits. For high-frequency tracking, cache results instead of polling every second.
What else can I track?: The satellite tracking endpoints also provide TLE (Two-Line Element) data for the ISS, which allows advanced orbit prediction and ground track projection.

API Details

API URL: https://api.open-notify.org/iss-now.json
Documentation: open-notify.org
Category: Science
Authentication: Not Required
Geographic Coverage: Global — Low Earth Orbit (LEO)

What You Can Build

Real-time ISS tracker with map overlay showing current orbital position
Pass predictor alerting users when the ISS will pass over their location
Speed and distance calculator showing ISS velocity relative to your position
Astronomy education display for planetariums showing live orbit data
Ground track mapper plotting ISS trajectory over Earth's surface