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Astronomy & Space vocabulary · Orbits & Gravity

low Earth orbit

Meaning in astronomy & space, with examples

nounCommon term

In astronomy & space, low Earth orbit means: An orbit relatively close to Earth, usually below about 2,000 km. The space station and most Earth observation satellites fly in low Earth orbit.

In Turkish: alçak Dünya yörüngesi, LEO

How it is used

Usually shortened to LEO, said 'lee-oh' or letter by letter. Engineers compare it with medium Earth orbit (MEO) and geostationary orbit (GEO). Large internet satellite constellations also operate in LEO.

Example sentences

  1. Satellites in low Earth orbit circle the planet in about an hour and a half.

  2. The rocket can carry about 20 tonnes to low Earth orbit.

Common collocations

  • in low Earth orbit
  • payload to low Earth orbit
  • LEO satellite
  • LEO constellation
  • orbitThe curved path that an object such as a planet, moon or satellite follows around another object because of gravity. As a verb, it means to move along this path.
  • geostationary orbitA circular orbit about 35,786 km above the equator in which a satellite takes one day to circle Earth, so it seems to stay fixed over the same spot.
  • space stationA large spacecraft that stays in orbit for years, where crews live and work for long periods and carry out experiments in microgravity.
  • space debrisDead satellites, spent rocket stages and fragments from collisions or explosions that stay in orbit around Earth and can damage working spacecraft.
  • satelliteAn object that orbits a planet or another body. Most often it means a machine sent into orbit for communication, navigation, weather forecasting or observation.

More terms: Orbits & Gravity

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