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.

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polar orbit British  

noun

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

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Etymology

Origin of polar orbit

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

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 company said it thinks the rural coast is a good location because it provides launch opportunities over the Atlantic Ocean directly into polar orbit with little interference.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 4, 2024

The $200 million Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter, also called Danuri—“enjoy the Moon” in Korean—will study the Moon from a polar orbit for at least a year.

From Science Magazine • Aug. 10, 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 fleet went into a polar orbit around that gigantic planet, which was useless to mankind because its atmosphere was partly gaseous ammonia and partly methane.

From Talents, Incorporated by Leinster, Murray