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   ocr: Which orbit? Satellites are placed in different orbits L circular routes around the Earth - according to the function that they perform. The easiest orbit for a satellite to reach is a low orbit which is about 300 kilometers (km) up. This is where the space shuttle and the Soviet space station, Mir, orbit. Another useful path that a satellite can follow is a polar orbit one that circles north-south over the two poles. As the Earth rotates, the satellite flies over a slighdy different section of the Earth's surface with each orbit. Over many orbits, it will have passed over the entire surface o ...