A low Earth orbit (LEO) is an orbit around Earth with a period of 128 minutes or less (making at least 11.25 orbits per day) and an eccentricity less than 0.25. [1]

Dec 21, 2024 · Low Earth orbit (LEO), region of space where satellites orbit closest to Earth’s surface. There is no official definition of this region, but it is usually considered to be between 160 and 1,600 km (about 100 and 1,000 miles) above Earth.

A visualization of satellites, debris, and other objects tracked by LeoLabs in low earth orbit

May 30, 2022 · In very simple terms, low Earth orbit (LEO) is exactly what it sounds like: An orbit around the Earth with an altitude that lies towards the lower end of the range of possible orbits.

Jul 24, 2022 · Orbiting around Earth every 90 minutes at an altitude of approximately 400 kilometers (250 miles), the International Space Station provides a spectacular vantage point to take pictures of our planet. From this setting, crew members aboard the space station have taken more than 3.5 million photographs of Earth.

Jan 6, 2017 · For over 70 years, Low-Earth Orbit has been the playground of human space capability. On occasion, we have ventured beyond the playground and farther out into the Solar System (and even...

Jan 12, 2025 · An object is said to be in low Earth orbit if it completes a revolution every 128 minutes or less. A 128-minute orbit, according to Kepler's third law, works out to a semi-major axis of 8,413...

Apr 7, 2024 · What is LEO (low Earth orbit)? Low Earth orbit (LEO) encompasses Earth-centered orbits with an altitude of 1,200 miles (2,000 km) or less. This orbit is considered near enough to Earth for convenient transportation, communication, observation, and resupply.

Low earth orbit (LEO) is defined by two characteristics. First, an object in LEO has an orbital pattern that is earth-centric. This means that the object itself orbits earth (as opposed to the moon or another planet). Secondly, LEO is defined as having an altitude of less than 2000 km (1200 miles). Like all objects that orbit the earth (whether ...

Nov 30, 2017 · This orbital regime is called low Earth orbit, or LEO, due to the satellites’ relative closeness to the Earth. Satellites in LEO typically take between 90 minutes and 2 hours to complete one full orbit around the Earth.