Skip to main content
Viventine Space Systems
VIVENTINE SPACE SYSTEMS
Space Regulatory Glossary Orbital Mechanics

MEO

/ɛm iː oʊ/ noun (abbr.) Medium Earth Orbit

  1. Medium Earth orbit. The region between low Earth orbit and geostationary orbit, generally defined as altitudes between approximately 2,000 km and 35,786 km.
  2. MEO hosts major navigation constellations including GPS (20,200 km), Galileo (23,222 km), and GLONASS (19,100 km). Satellites in MEO traverse the Van Allen radiation belts, requiring radiation-hardened components.

Related terms

LEO Low Earth orbit. An orbit around Earth at altitudes between approximately 160 km and 2,000 km. GEO Geostationary orbit. A circular equatorial orbit at approximately 35,786 km altitude where a satellite's orbital period… Van Allen belts Two concentric zones of charged particles trapped by Earth's magnetic field. The inner belt (1,000–6,000 km) consists…

Browse all terms in the Space Regulatory Glossary →

Track these terms in action

Orbit Sentinel monitors FCC, ITU, UNOOSA, and FAA filings, updated daily. See the regulatory language behind the definitions.

Sign up for the beta Read The Downlink