perigean
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per·i·gee
(pĕr′ə-jē)n.
1. Astronomy The point in an orbit around the planet Earth where the orbiting body is closest to the planet.
2. The analogous point in an orbit around a celestial body other than Earth. Not in technical use.
[French périgée, from Medieval Latin perigēum, from Late Greek perigeion : Greek peri-, peri- + Greek gē, earth.]
per′i·ge′al (-jē′əl), per′i·ge′an (-jē′ən) adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.