polar orbit

American  

noun

1. a spacecraft orbit that passes over, or close to, the geographic poles of the earth or some other celestial body.

---

polar orbit British  

noun

1. the orbit of a satellite that passes over the poles of a planet

---

Etymology

Origin of polar orbit

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

polar orbit

Buzza said the launches are important for the Starlink satellite broadband network SpaceX is building, since they put the satellites into a polar orbit, complementing Florida launches that put them in an equatorial orbit.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2024

The Falcon rocket blasted off at sunset with 40 mini satellites bound for polar orbit.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 8, 2022

It should enter a polar orbit 100 kilometers above the lunar surface and conduct observations for at least a year.

From Science Magazine ● Jul. 28, 2022

Russia also plans two follow-on missions after Luna-25: Luna-26, a mission to study the moon from low polar orbit, and another lander mission, Luna-27, which would study lunar regolith on the surface.

From Scientific American ● Apr. 25, 2022

The war-fleet of Kandar, in very fine formation, flowed in its polar orbit around the fourth planet out from Kandar's sun.

From Talents, Incorporated by Murray Leinster