What is the difference between geosynchronous and polar orbit?

What is the difference between geosynchronous and polar orbit?

While polar orbits have an inclination of about 90 degrees to the equator, geostationary orbits match the rotation of the Earth. A sun-synchronous orbit passes by any given point with the same local solar time, which is useful for consistent lighting and sun angle.

What is Mars geosynchronous orbit?

The Martian geostationary orbit altitude is only 13,634 kilometers (so an orbital radius of 20,428 kilometers, or about 3,000 kilometers inside the orbit of Deimos).

What is the difference between polar orbit and sun synchronous orbit?

Polar orbits are a type of low Earth orbit, as they are at low altitudes between 200 to 1000 km. Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) is a particular kind of polar orbit. Satellites in SSO, travelling over the polar regions, are synchronous with the Sun.

Are geosynchronous and geostationary the same thing?

In technical terminology, the geosynchronous orbits are often referred to as geostationary if they are roughly over the equator, but the terms are used somewhat interchangeably. Specifically, geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) may be a synonym for geosynchronous equatorial orbit, or geostationary Earth orbit.

Is the Moon in geosynchronous orbit?

Our Moon is obviously not in synchronous, or more specifically geosynchronous orbit about the Earth. The period of its orbit around the Earth is not the same as our sidereal day; in fact, it takes the Moon about 27.3 of our days to complete one orbit of our Earth.

Is Mars geosynchronous?

The areosynchronous orbits (ASO) are the synchronous orbits for artificial satellites around the planet Mars. They are the martian equivalent of the geosynchronous orbits (GSO) on the Earth.

What is meant by polar orbit?

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

Is geosynchronous orbit circular?

geostationary orbit, a circular orbit 35,785 km (22,236 miles) above Earth’s Equator in which a satellite’s orbital period is equal to Earth’s rotation period of 23 hours and 56 minutes. A spacecraft in this orbit appears to an observer on Earth to be stationary in the sky.

Why is geosynchronous orbit important?

A geosynchronous orbit is a high Earth orbit that allows satellites to match Earth’s rotation. Located at 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above Earth’s equator, this position is a valuable spot for monitoring weather, communications and surveillance.