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GTO is a highly elliptical Earth orbit with an apogee (the point in the orbit of the moon or a satellite at which it is furthest from the earth) of 42,164 km (26,199 mi), [3] or a height of 35,786 km (22,236 mi) above sea level, which corresponds to the geostationary altitude.
Transfer orbits using electrical propulsion or low-thrust engines optimize the transfer time to reach the final orbit and not the delta-v as in the Hohmann transfer orbit. For geostationary orbit, the initial orbit is set to be supersynchronous and by thrusting continuously in the direction of the velocity at apogee, the transfer orbit ...
The first satellite placed in a geostationary orbit was Syncom 3, which was launched by a Delta D rocket in 1964. [14] With its increased bandwidth, this satellite was able to transmit live coverage of the Summer Olympics from Japan to America. Geostationary orbits have been in common use ever since, in particular for satellite television. [10]
For example, although more fuel is needed to transfer a heavier communication satellite from low Earth orbit to geosynchronous orbit than for a lighter one, the delta-v required is the same. Delta- v is also additive, as contrasted to rocket burn time, the latter having greater effect later in the mission when more fuel has been used up.
Bi-elliptic transfer, a slower method of transfer, but one that may be more efficient than a Hohmann transfer orbit; Geostationary transfer orbit or geosynchronous transfer orbit is usually also a Hohmann transfer orbit; Lunar transfer orbit is an orbit that touches Low Earth orbit and a lunar orbit
A special case of the geosynchronous orbit, the geostationary orbit, has an eccentricity of zero (meaning the orbit is circular), and an inclination of zero in the Earth-Centered, Earth-Fixed coordinate system (meaning the orbital plane is not tilted relative to the Earth's equator). The "ground track" in this case consists of a single point on ...
A bi-elliptic transfer can require less energy than the Hohmann transfer, if the ratio of orbits is 11.94 or greater, [5] but comes at the cost of increased trip time over the Hohmann transfer. Faster transfers may use any orbit that intersects both the original and destination orbits, at the cost of higher delta-v.
In spaceflight, an orbital maneuver (otherwise known as a burn) is the use of propulsion systems to change the orbit of a spacecraft. For spacecraft far from Earth, an orbital maneuver is called a deep-space maneuver (DSM). [1] When a spacecraft is not conducting a maneuver, especially in a transfer orbit, it is said to be coasting.