Random Science Rant - Tumblr Posts

To anyone curious about the science behind the Brick Satellite:

-as a fixed point in the sky, it follows a geosynchronous/geostationary orbit. This mean that it orbits the Earth at the same speed that Earth rotates (so Anna will only ever see half of the Earth), and also that it rotates around the same axis as Earth does (so it stays at the equator and never crosses the poles or gets into any higher latitudes) (see diagram for details).

-satellites that follow this orbit either need to be launched at the equator, or make course corrections after launch (for example, with boosters). Even in modern day, the European Space Agency does launches in French Guiana because transporting people and equipment to South America is less expensive than the additional costs of launching the additional fuel, boosters, etc. And for a satellite made out of Brick?! Yeah, a launch in England or South Africa would not be possible (you could technically launch a satellite that orbits Earth, but it wouldn't follow the right orbit to remain fixed in the sky and so it wouldn't help anyone with navigation).

-other fun fact about Geosynchronous orbits: they're pretty far out, especially compared to satellites in low earth orbits like the ISS (see diagram for reference). So those must have been some pretty powerful flywheels.

Fun fact about the brick satellite:

You know how the moon goes through phases as it orbits the Earth? How we have half moons and full moons and all that?

The satellite would do the same. But over the course of a day (since it's a fixed point in the sky and orbits at the speed of Earth's rotation). So like, it would be in its full moon form around midnight, and in a half moon form around sunrise.

And from the view satellite, the Earth would also go through these phases over the course of a day, but the Earth's full moon form would be around noon.