orbital
adj.adj. relating to the path an object takes as it moves around a star or planet. It can also describe the area around your eye.
adj. relating to an orbit, particularly the curved path of a celestial object or spacecraft around a star, planet, or moon. In a biological context, refers to the bony cavity that contains the eyeball.
The satellite reached its stable orbital path this morning.
Engineers calculated the precise orbital velocity required to keep the space station from falling back into the atmosphere.
The surgeon carefully examined the orbital fracture to ensure that the delicate muscles controlling eye movement had not been trapped within the broken bone.
Borrowed from Medieval Latin orbitālis, from orbita (“a track or rut; a circuit, orbit”) + -ālis (“-al”, adjectival suffix), equivalent to orbit + -al. Doublet of orbitalis.
Typically precedes the noun it modifies; in technical contexts, it often forms part of a compound noun phrase like 'orbital period' or 'orbital socket'.