geosynchronous
adjEtymology From geo- + synchronous.
1
Refers to the orbit of a satellite whose rate of revolution is matched to the rotation period of the Earth. A special case is the geostationary orbit, which is circular and equatorial, so that the satellite appears to be fixed over a particular point on Earth's surface.
- Hiro looks up, focuses his gaze on Earth, zooms in for a look. As he gets closer, the imagery he’s looking at shifts from the long-range pictures coming in from the geosynchronous satellites to the good stuff being spewed into the CIC computer from a whole fleet of low-flying spy birds. The view he’s looking at is a mosaic of images shot no more than a few hours ago.1992, Neal Stephenson, Snow Crash, page 250:
- Derived terms
- geosynchronicity, geosynchronously, geosynchronous orbit
- Related terms
- areosynchronous, geostationary, heliostationary, heliosynchronous