noun / adjective
satellite
SAT-uh-lyte/ˈsætəlaɪt/
An object traveling around a larger celestial body.
The satellite circles Earth and sends weather data to scientists.
Etymology
Latin satelles meant an attendant accompanying a superior. That image was applied to Jupiter’s moons: smaller bodies attending a larger one became the model for the astronomical meaning.
In context
that and taught us that the only force acting on a satellite acts toward the body it orbits that's the gravitational force
More examples
- The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite.
- Jupiter has many satellites of different sizes.
- Satellite images show the storm moving toward the coast.
Forms
satellite · satellites
Similar words
- moon
- A natural satellite of a planet, not an artificial object.
- orbiter
- A spacecraft designed to orbit, rather than a natural body.