Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO)

Geostationary Transfer Orbit is the elliptical highway used to deliver satellites to the geostationary belt. The rocket drops the payload on an arc whose apogee just touches GEO altitude; the satellite then fires its own apogee kick motor to circularise. Heavy-lift commercial launches — Ariane 5/6, Falcon 9, Long March 3 — dominate this regime.

Common uses: communications satellite delivery, direct-broadcast TV, military comms