apogee

What it means

1. astronomyThe point, in an orbit about the Earth, that is farthest from the Earth: the apoapsis of an Earth orbiter.
2. broadlyastronomyThe point, in an orbit about any planet, that is farthest from the planet: the apoapsis of any satellite.

   [Nereid’s] apogee—farthest point from Neptune—is five times the distance of its perigee—its closest point.

   2010, Ruth Walker, Mary M. Shaffrey, et al., Exploring Space: The High Frontier, Jones & Bartlett Learning, →ISBN, page 129

   2 more examples

   Conjunctions of I and II [Io and Europa] occur when they are near perigee and apogee respectively; conjunctions of II and III [Europa and Ganymede] occur when II [Europa] is near perigee.

   1995, John H. Rogers, The Giant Planet Jupiter, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 335

   The resolution of the images obtained by this American probe [Messenger] will depend on its altitude [above Mercury] at any one time: about ten meters at perigee (200km altitude), but only one 1 km at apogee (15000km).

   2002, Serge Brunier, Solar System Voyage, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 36

3. possibly archaic outside astrologyThe point, in any trajectory of an object in space, where it is farthest from the Earth.

In a sentence

Conjunctions of I and II [Io and Europa] occur when they are near perigee and apogee respectively; conjunctions of II and III [Europa and Ganymede] occur when II [Europa] is near perigee.

1995, John H. Rogers, The Giant Planet Jupiter, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 335

Where it comes from

1. Ancient Greekἀπόγειον“away from Earth”
2. Latinapogaeum
3. Middle Frenchapogée
4. Englishapogee

From Middle French apogée, from Latin apogaeum, apogēum, from Ancient Greek ἀπόγειον (apógeion, “away from Earth”), from ἀπό (apó, “away”) + γῆ (gê, “Earth”).