MEO (medium Earth orbit)
Medium Earth orbit (MEO) is the band from about 2,000 km up to the geostationary altitude of 35,786 km, best known as the home of navigation satellites.
GPS, Galileo, GLONASS and BeiDou all fly in MEO, typically near 20,000 km, where a satellite circles Earth about twice a day and stays in view long enough for reliable positioning.
Fewer satellites are needed here than in LEO to cover the globe, but each is farther away and harder to see with the naked eye.
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Related terms
- LEO — Low Earth orbit (LEO) is the region of space from about 160 to 2,000 km above Earth's surface, where satellites circle the planet in roughly 90 minutes.
- GEO — Geostationary orbit (GEO) is the circular orbit 35,786 km above the equator where a satellite's period exactly matches Earth's rotation, so it appears fixed over one spot.
- GNSS — GNSS is the umbrella term for the satellite constellations that provide positioning, navigation and timing — GPS, Galileo, GLONASS and BeiDou.
