Do You Know Where Your Satellite Is Tonight?
By David Finkleman
Increasingly crowded orbits require transparent modeling practices and data exchange.
Increasingly crowded orbits require transparent modeling practices and data exchange.
A satellite in orbit around the planet moves at 8 kilometers per second. Right now, there are about 9,500 satellites circling Earth, and about three-quarters of them are classified as small satellites—with a mass less than 500 kilograms and possibly as little as a few kilograms. Space is vast, but orbits most useful to us are either geostationary (in which the satellite rotates with the Earth) or within about 1,000 kilometers of the surface. The likelihood of satellites in these orbits colliding with one another or with debris is very small, but the cost and consequences of such a collision could be very large. Although classical mechanics might have led us to believe that orbits never change, in fact there are physical phenomena on many timescales that can change orbits. We must observe satellites and account for all these factors to track where satellites are now and estimate where they might be in the future.
Click "American Scientist" to access home page
American Scientist Comments and Discussion
To discuss our articles or comment on them, please share them and tag American Scientist on social media platforms. Here are links to our profiles on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
If we re-share your post, we will moderate comments/discussion following our comments policy.