Hey Candlemonk Family!
Everyday I spend my evening time with my mum and dad. We go up on the terrace and water plants together, we laugh together, we sing songs together. It is a very beautiful part of my day. It happened yesterday around 8 p.m. that my mother astonishingly shouted " look a star is moving!! " Me, a space enthusiast, shockingly began seeing around. "How can this be possible" running through my mind. When I caught the sight of the 'moving star', I knew what it actually was. Do you know too? No problem I'm here to clarify your doubts.
It was a satellite.
We know what satellites are. Do they always keep moving? Let's clear our doubts.
There are currently, more than 2,787 artificial satellites orbiting the earth. More than 3000 satellites are dead and just littering space.
Now many of you would wonder, then why don't we see them so often as there are so many of them moving around earth? Nice question. The reason behind this, are the different orbits that are made for satellites.
The closest orbit is the LEO (low earth orbit). It is 160km above the surface of earth and is extended till 1000km. Satellites in this orbit move at a speed of 7.8 km per second. At this speed satellites take 90 minutes to circle Earth. The ISS (international space station) is in this orbit. It travels around the earth 16 times a day. Satellites in LEO don't have to move on specific paths, their planes can be tilted.
Then we have MEO (medium earth orbit). Satellites in this too don't have a fixed path. This orbit is very commonly used by navigation satellites.
Then comes GEO(geostationary orbit). Satellites in this orbit circle the earth above the equator from West to East, following Earths Rotation. This means, the satellites move at the same pace of Earths rotation - 23 hours 56 minutes and 4 seconds. These satellites are fixed above the earths surface, with a fixed path. These satellites move at a speed of 3km per second at an altitude of 35,786 km, to match the earth's rotational speed. This orbit lies on a higher altitude than MEO. This orbit is common for telecommunication satellites. We can't see these satellites moving. They'd appear to us just like stars.
Then we have Polar Orbit. As the name suggests satellites in this orbit move from one pole to another, from North to South at an altitude between 200 km to 1000km.These satellites are used to see any changes taking place on the surface of the Earth.
At last we have a SSO(sun synchronous orbit). The satellites in this orbit are programmed to move like sun. This means they are synchronised to always be in the same ‘fixed’ position relative to the Sun. The satellites will appear on a place everyday at the same time, just like sun, for example at noon. This is a kind of polar orbit. If we need to see the changes in some place we have to observe that place every day at the same time. That's why this sun synchronization helps.
Everything related to space fascinates me so much. It makes me admire the technological advancement we've reached today. Yet, there's so much more to develop.
Hope this article was worth your read. Want more space related articles? Tell me in the comments.
Have A Great Day Fam!
