Almost all of the satellites bright enough to see with the naked eye are low-Earth orbit satellites, orbiting within a thousand kilometers (600 miles) of Earth.

Most low-Earth orbit satellites are in one of two types of orbits: polar orbits pass over almost every part of the globe as Earth turns beneath them, equatorial orbits hug Earth's equator.

Polar-orbiting satellites are visible to most observers over time, but only stargazers in the tropics or sub-tropics will get to see most equatorial satellites.