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Amazing Facts About Satellites

What is a Satellite?

A satellite is basically any object that orbits another (usually larger) planet. In this context, we’re talking about artificial satellites. The difference between artificial and natural satellites is that artificial satellites are placed in orbit intentionally while natural satellites are formed by natural events.

What are Satellites used for?

Satellites have come a long way from sputnik1 which was the first manmade satellite launched into space by Russia in October 4th 1957. Satellites have a wide range of applications in making life easier for all man kind. here are some of them;

  • They are used in monitoring weather on a global scale
  • They are used in GPS navigation
  • Telescopes in some satellites are used to monitor space
  • Satellites monitor global climate change
  • Some satellites can detect minerals in remote areas or even underground
  • Satellites also can transmit signals in telephones and cables or network TV

Here are some Amazing facts about Satellites

  • There are over 2700 satellites orbiting the earth, and the number just keeps increasing.
  • There are 3 types of orbit for satellites; Low-earth orbit(LEO), medium-earth orbit(MEO), geostationary orbit(GEO)
  • Geostationary orbit satellites appear to be stationary in the sky. They aren’t really stationary, they just orbit the earth at almost the same speed with the earth’s rotation.
  • Geostationary orbit is attained at an altitude of 35,786km or 22,236miles above the equator
  • Low earth orbit satellites are smaller and less complex than other orbit satellites
  • Low earth orbit is attained at a range of 300-22,236miles above the earth’s surface
  • Middle earth orbit is attained at a range of 5000-12000km or 3100-7500 miles up.
  • Satellite placements have to be very precise or else, it could end up damaging or interfering with other satellites
  • Satellites can travel up to 18,000 miles per hour which is 432,000 miles of distance covered in a day. Basically 16 times the earths circumference.
  • Over 100 nations signed a treaty that basically stops them from weaponizing satellites.

 

 

Robin Okwanma
Robin Okwanmahttps://justrobin.dev
Hi, I'm Robin Okwanma. Software Engineer || Django, Python || React, React Native || Blogger. Technical Writer.
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