LEO – Low Earth Orbiter

A Low Earth Orbiter (LEO) is a satellite that orbits Earth at relatively low altitude, generally between ~160 km and ~2 000 km above the surface. Its orbit period is short (≈ 90-120 minutes) allowing frequent revisits over any given ground location. In geodesy, LEO satellites are valuable because they are sensitive to high-frequency variations in Earth’s gravity field, and can map surface topography, ice sheet changes, sea level, and mass redistribution with high spatial resolution.