An artificial satellite orbit is a path that an artificial satellite makes around another object with sufficient mass to have a gravitational effect on it. For other uses, please see Satellite (disambiguation) A satellite is an object that orbits another object (known as its primary). ... Unsolved problems in physics: What causes anything to have mass? The U.S. National Prototype Kilogram, which currently serves as the primary standard for measuring mass in the U.S. Mass is the property of a physical object that quantifies the amount of matter and energy it is equivalent to. ...

Most satellites in both equatorial and polar orbits fly at low altitudes between 100 and 1,000 miles (160 and 1,600 km).

Geostationary satellites, on the other hand, are in very high equatorial orbits 22,300 miles (35,800 km) above earth, which exactly matches the earth's rotation speed so that the satellite remains above a constant position on earth. To arrive at this orbit, the satellite is first launched to an orbit called geostationary transfer orbit, a highly elliptical orbit around the earth. A geostationary orbit (GEO) is a geosynchronous orbit directly above the Earths equator (0º latitude). ... A geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) is a Hohmann transfer orbit around the Earth between a low Earth orbit (LEO) and a geostationary orbit (GEO). ... In astrodynamics or celestial mechanics a elliptic orbit is an orbit with the eccentricity greater than 0 and less than 1. ...

NASA provides real-time tracking of the over 500 artificial satellites maintained in orbit about our earth. For the position of these satellites see NASA satellite tracking.

You can also download free satellite tracking software to display real-time positions of any satellite in orbit around the earth, such as Satscape

See also

• Orbit
• Orbit (disambiguation).

Two bodies with a slight difference in mass orbiting around a common barycenter. ... The word orbit can mean more than one thing: Planetary orbit Orbit (anatomy) In computing: ORBit - an object request broker (ORB) for CORBA ORBit2 - an object request broker (ORB) for CORBA In mathematics: Orbit (dynamics) Orbit (group theory) Wrigleys Orbit, a brand of chewing gum. ...

External links

• Orbits in strongly curved spacetime
• Satellite Orbit Data Calculator
• How do satellites orbit the earth?
• Display Satellite orbit positions in real-time