Book 8, Question 81
Why Do Satellites Stay Up Without Flapping Wings?
Satellites stay up without flapping wings because they move sideways so fast that, as they fall, Earth curves away beneath them! Orbit is high-speed falling in a circle. They don't need wings or engines to keep flying around.
More fun facts
- Satellites do not fall from the sky because they are orbiting Earth.
- Gravity, together with the speed a satellite gets from its launch, keeps it circling instead of falling to the ground.
- As a satellite 'falls' toward Earth, Earth's surface curves away beneath it, so it keeps falling around the planet.
- Satellites close to Earth have to travel at very high speeds to stay in orbit.
- Some satellites can stay in orbit for hundreds of years.
- Most satellites that come down today are ones that were planned to retire at the end of their working lives.
Sources: NOAA, Smithsonian Magazine
Questions kids ask
Why don't satellites fall down?
Gravity and the speed they got from launch keep them falling around Earth instead of into it.