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Geostationary orbit. A 5° × 6° view of a part of the geostationary belt, showing several geostationary satellites. Those with inclination 0° form a diagonal belt across the image; a few objects with small inclinations to the Equator are visible above this line. The satellites are pinpoint, while stars have created star trails due to Earth's ...
The geostationary satellite (green) always remains above the same marked spot on the equator (brown). A geostationary equatorial orbit (GEO) is a circular geosynchronous orbit in the plane of the Earth's equator with a radius of approximately 42,164 km (26,199 mi) (measured from the center of the Earth). [21]: 156 A satellite in such an orbit ...
A geostationary satellite is in orbit around the Earth at an altitude where it orbits at the same rate as the Earth turns. An observer at any place where the satellite is visible will always see it in exactly the same spot in the sky, unlike stars and planets that move continuously. Geostationary satellites appear to be fixed over one spot ...
A weather satellite or meteorological satellite is a type of Earth observation satellite that is primarily used to monitor the weather and climate of the Earth. Satellites can be polar orbiting (covering the entire Earth asynchronously), or geostationary (hovering over the same spot on the equator). [1]
To avoid confusion, geosynchronous satellites that are not in geostationary orbit are sometimes referred to as being in an inclined geostationary orbit (IGSO). Some of these satellites are separated from each other by as little as 0.1° longitude. This corresponds to an inter-satellite spacing of approximately 73 km.
A satellite ground track may be thought of as a path along the Earth's surface that traces the movement of an imaginary line between the satellite and the center of the Earth. In other words, the ground track is the set of points at which the satellite will pass directly overhead, or cross the zenith, in the frame of reference of a ground observer.
In space mission design, a geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) or geosynchronous transfer orbit is a highly elliptical type of geocentric orbit, usually with a perigee as low as low Earth orbit (LEO) and an apogee as high as geostationary orbit (GEO). Satellites that are destined for geosynchronous orbit (GSO) or GEO are often put into a GTO as ...
Properties. A satellite in a synchronous orbit that is both equatorial and circular will appear to be suspended motionless above a point on the orbited planet's equator. For synchronous satellites orbiting Earth, this is also known as a geostationary orbit. However, a synchronous orbit need not be equatorial; nor circular.