orbiter

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orbiter

a space probe designed to orbit a planetary body: The orbiter will land shortly.

Not to be confused with:

arbiter – a person empowered to judge or make determinations: She will act as arbiter in the dispute.

or·bit·er

(ôr′bĭ-tər)

One that orbits, especially a spacecraft that orbits a celestial body.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

orbiter

(ˈɔːbɪtə)

(Aeronautics) a spacecraft or satellite designed to orbit a planet or other body without landing on it. Compare lander

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

or•bit•er

(ˈɔr bɪ tər)

n.

1. a space probe designed to orbit a planetary body or moon.

2. the crew- and payload-carrying component of a space shuttle.

[1950–55, Amer.]

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Noun

orbiter - man-made equipment that orbits around the earth or the moon

artificial satellite, satellite

astronomy satellite - a satellite equipped with a telescope to observe infrared radiation

communications satellite - an artificial satellite that relays signals back to earth; moves in a geostationary orbit

equipment - an instrumentality needed for an undertaking or to perform a service

solar array, solar battery, solar panel - electrical device consisting of a large array of connected solar cells

ballistic capsule, space vehicle, spacecraft - a craft capable of traveling in outer space; technically, a satellite around the sun

space laboratory, space platform, space station - a manned artificial satellite in a fixed orbit designed for scientific research

sputnik - a Russian artificial satellite; "Sputnik was the first man-made satellite to orbit the earth"

spy satellite - a satellite with sensors to detect nuclear explosions

meteorological satellite, weather satellite - a satellite that transmits frequent picture of the earth below

Translations

orbiteur

orbiter

[ˈɔːbɪtəʳ] N (Space) → orbitador m

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

orbiter

n (Space) → Orbiter m, → Raumflugkörper m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

References in periodicals archive ?

More recently, images from lunar orbiters have shown that the polar craters' shadowed floors are relatively bright at ultraviolet and near-infrared wavelengths.

Solid Evidence of Water Ice on Moon

Orbiters are special spacecraft that spend their time continuously traveling around an object, such as a moon or a planet.

Communicating with curiosity

TEHRAN (FNA)- NASA beefed up a process of traffic monitoring, communication and maneuver planning to ensure that Mars orbiters do not approach each other too closely.

Traffic around Mars Gets Busy

April will be a relatively quiet month for the rovers and orbiters that we've sent to Mars, thanks to a conjunction between the the sun and the neighbor planets.

Mars Solar Conjunction To Interfere With NASA Calls To Orbiters And Rovers In April

As the US and European space programs sent advanced orbiters and landers to explore the planet over the past decade, evidence for a warm, wet early Mars began to build, CSMonitor.com reported.

Best bet for life on Mars may be underground

But after 26 years service and 100 million miles on the clock, the orbiters are expected to remain grounded in retirement.

FOR SALE: 60s classic, one careful owner, 100million miles on clock; NASA SELLS OFF 3 SHUTTLES

With an average of around 100million miles each on the clock and up to 26 years service, the orbiters are expected to remain firmly on the ground.

pounds 30m for a shuttle

A NASA spacecraft successfully slipped into orbit around Mars, joining a trio of orbiters already circling the red planet after a critical firing of its engines.

TheWorldTonight: Craft starts Mars study

Such a layer could explain why the spectrometers on several Mars orbiters haven't detected the signature of ice, leading scientists to conclude that the planet has been dry for billions of years.

Martian landscaping: spacecraft eyes evidence of a frozen sea

Columbia was one of four flightworthy reusable space shuttle orbiters in NASA's fleet.

NASA's Space Shuttle Columbia: quick facts and issues for Congress

More important, plans for new sets of NASA orbiters and landers--one to launch in 2001, the other in 2003--are already in the works.