What does suborbital mean?
Suborbital describes something that travels high into space but does not achieve a complete orbit around Earth or another celestial body. The term is especially common in aerospace engineering, where suborbital flights, rockets, and trajectories are distinguished from orbital missions that remain in orbit or circle a body repeatedly. A suborbital vehicle may still travel at very high speeds and carry experiments or passengers into space before returning to Earth. In anatomical usage, suborbital can describe the area beneath the orbit, or eye socket. The word combines the prefix sub-, meaning below or beneath, with orbital, relating to an orbit. Although suborbital flight does not involve a complete orbit, it is not merely low-altitude flight: the vehicle may cross the boundary of space and operate at speeds and distances far beyond ordinary aviation.
adjectiveRelating to or involving a flight or trajectory that does not achieve a complete orbit. It can also describe an area located beneath the orbit of the eye.
- Relating to or involving a flight, trajectory, or vehicle that does not achieve a complete orbit.
- Situated below the orbit of the eye.
"The spacecraft completed a suborbital flight before descending back to Earth."
"The test vehicle was designed for a suborbital flight carrying several experiments."
"The surgeon examined the tissue in the suborbital region beneath the eye."
A suborbital flight reaches space without going all the way around Earth: it rises high, travels across the sky, and falls back.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does suborbital come from?
The word was formed in the 20th century from the combining form sub-, meaning under or below, and orbital, which comes from orbit. Orbit ultimately derives from Latin orbis, meaning circle, while orbital developed in English from that Latin root. The prefix emphasizes that the flight or path remains below the threshold of a complete orbit rather than entering a sustained orbital course.
Related word forms
How suborbital is actually used
The word is most common in aerospace contexts. In medicine and anatomy, it is a technical term for a structure or region below the eye socket.
Easily confused with suborbital
A suborbital vehicle travels along a path that does not complete a full orbit, whereas an orbital vehicle circles the Earth or another body continuously.