- a variation of geostationary.
geosynchronous
Britishadjective
Explanation
Geosynchronous describes a certain type of movement by something orbiting Earth, such as a satellite. A geosynchronous orbit is one that moves around Earth at the same speed Earth rotates. Earth makes one complete rotation approximately every 24 hours (specifically, 23 hours, 56 minutes, 4.1 seconds). Something that's geosynchronous circles Earth once in that same amount of time. A geosynchronous orbit brings a satellite back to the same position relative to an observer on Earth at the exact same time every day, because its movement is deliberately synchronized with the Earth's rotation. Geosynchronous is from the Greek geo-, "Earth," and synkhronos, "happening at the same time."
Vocabulary lists containing geosynchronous
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
With the proposed StormWall, six satellites in geosynchronous orbit would release hundreds of thousands of pounds of material, such as barium, lithium or sodium.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
Well, yes, but Overview’s satellites essentially gather sunlight in geosynchronous orbit and beam it down as near-infrared light External link to existing solar projects.
From Barron's ● Apr. 27, 2026
The Air Force Research Lab tracks spacecraft beyond geosynchronous orbit — basically a traffic camera for the Solar System.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 30, 2025
A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 at 3:11 p.m. carrying the Merah Putih 2 telecommunications satellite for Telkom Indonesia to a geosynchronous transfer orbit.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 21, 2024
They owned and operated communi- cations companies, including their own geosynchronous satellite.
From Terminal Compromise: computer terrorism: when privacy and freedom are the victims: a novel by Schwartau, Winn
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
