Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO)
The intermediate orbit into which launch vehicles deliver payloads bound for geostationary orbit, from which the satellite raises itself.
Overview
An elliptical transfer orbit with perigee in low Earth orbit and apogee at the geostationary altitude, used to carry a satellite most of the way to GEO before its own engine circularises the orbit.
Typical uses
The intermediate orbit into which launch vehicles deliver payloads bound for geostationary orbit, from which the satellite raises itself.
Satellites in this orbit
1 satellite and constellations modelled in this orbit.
- HipparcosRetired
ESA's pioneering astrometry satellite, which precisely measured the positions, distances, and motions of over 100,000 stars — the forerunner of Gaia. An apogee-motor failure left it in a highly elliptical orbit, yet it still delivered landmark astrometric catalogues.
OperatorESAOrbitHighly ellipticalLaunched1989
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.
- ESAEuropean Space Agency
European missions, observatories, and space science imagery.