Quote:
Originally Posted by pluto
An object in a geosynchronous orbit is still falling around the Earth, it's just that at that altitude/speed it takes it 24hrs to complete an orbit. Obviously in the 24hrs it takes to complete it's orbit the Earth has rotated 360deg and therefore the satellite has stayed in the same position in the sky relative to the Earth. Also a geosync orbit like the one you described is only possible above the equator. Of course you could have orbits at other inclinations and eccentricities that take 24 hours but the objects on those orbits would not appear to stay in the same spot in the sky.
|
my point was that they can appear to hover in one spot from the ground, not that they are actually hovering..