Spaceflight glossary.

Definitions of the orbital, launch, and detection terms used throughout LaunchDetect. Each term has a dedicated page with extended context.

Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
An orbit around Earth with an altitude of approximately 160 to 2,000 km above mean sea level. Used for most Earth-observ...
Geostationary Orbit (GEO)
A circular orbit at an altitude of approximately 35,786 km above Earth's equator where a satellite's orbital period exac...
Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO)
A near-polar low Earth orbit where the satellite passes over any given point on Earth's surface at the same local solar ...
Two-Line Element (TLE)
A standardized data format that encodes the orbital elements of an Earth-orbiting object as two 69-character text lines....
Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM)
An aviation advisory issued by national civil aviation authorities (in the US, the FAA) to alert pilots of conditions af...
ABI Band 7 (3.9 µm shortwave infrared)
The 3.9-micron shortwave infrared spectral band on the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) instrument flown on NOAA GOES-16/1...
Plume Azimuth
The compass direction (in degrees clockwise from true north) that a rocket's exhaust plume points after ignition, as obs...
Launch Window
The specific period of time during which a rocket can launch to meet its mission objectives — usually constrained by orb...
Orbital Insertion
The maneuver(s) by which a launch vehicle's payload achieves a stable orbit around Earth (or another body). For most LEO...
Geostationary
Describing an object (typically a satellite) in geostationary orbit. From the ground, a geostationary satellite appears ...
Sun-Synchronous
Describing an orbit that passes over the same point on Earth's surface at the same local solar time on each revolution. ...