suborbital

adjective

sub·​or·​bit·​al ˌsəb-ˈȯr-bə-tᵊl 

1

: situated beneath the eye or the orbit of the eye

2

: being or involving less than one orbit (as of the earth or moon)

also : intended for suborbital flight

Examples of suborbital in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After several successful suborbital flights in a row, SpaceX officials decided this launch should go all the way to low-Earth orbit. — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 2 Oct. 2026

Starship debuted in April 2023 and now has 13 missions under its belt, all of them suborbital. — Mike Wall, Space.com, 28 Sep. 2026

One of the Starship upper stage's six Raptor engines shut down early during the climb to an initially suborbital trajectory. — William Harwood, CBS News, 28 Sep. 2026

Six trips around Earth All 13 previous Starship flights since 2023 were suborbital. — Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1803, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for suborbital

• infraorbital
• postorbital
• interorbital
• periorbital
• supraorbital
• orbital

Medical Definition

suborbital

adjective

sub·​or·​bit·​al ˌsəb-ˈȯr-bət-ᵊl 

: situated or occurring beneath the eye or the orbit of the eye

suborbital fat