Which statement about weather satellites below is most accurate?

• A. They operate in the same orbits as do communications satellites, due to mission similarities.
• B. They operate in two orbital regimes: LEO sun-synchronous and geostationary.
• C. They operate in two orbital regimes: LEO sun-synchronous and HEO.
• D. They operate only in GEO, where they can get a synoptic view of the earth,

Answer: (B)

Weather observations rely on two complementary orbital regimes to balance detail and coverage. In a sun-synchronous low Earth orbit, a satellite passes over the same local solar time on every orbit, giving consistent lighting conditions and high-resolution imagery that’s ideal for tracking weather patterns and detecting changes over time. In geostationary orbit, a satellite remains fixed above a point on the equator, providing continuous, real-time monitoring of weather over a large area and supporting nowcasting and short-term forecasts. This combination—LEO sun-synchronous for high-resolution, repeatable observations and GEO for constant regional coverage—is what makes that statement the most accurate. The other options don’t fit because weather satellites aren’t confined to the same orbits as communications satellites, highly elliptical orbits aren’t typical for weather missions, and many weather systems use polar sun-synchronous orbits in addition to GEO, not GEO alone.