orbit
noun
the curved path, usually elliptical, taken by a planet, satellite, spaceship, etc., around a celestial body, as the sun.
had been orbiting
-
past perfect progressiveof orbit.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
The key measurement will be how much the smaller asteroid, which had been orbiting Didymos every 11 hours and 55 minutes, has sped up.
From New York Times ● Sep. 26, 2022
The shuttle was scheduled to dock with the Russian space station Mir, which had been orbiting for 12 years.
From New York Times ● Jun. 10, 2022
After more than 21 hours on the lunar surface, the Eagle took off to rejoin the Columbia command module, in which Collins had been orbiting the moon.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 26, 2012
Finally, after it had been orbiting freely for more than six hours, it was hauled back aboard the shuttle and tucked safely away in the cargo bay for use on a future mission.
From Time Magazine Archive
Shoemaker-Levy 9 had been orbiting Jupiter in a fairly conspicuous manner since 1929, but it took over half a century before anyone noticed.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
