What Are the Different Earth Orbits? | Neil deGrasse Tyson Explains…

What are the different Earth orbits? On this explainer, Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice explore getting into orbit, what each level of orbit means, and how they are used. Also, how would a space elevator work?
What is a geosynchronous orbit? Geostationary? We discuss how Isaac Newton figured out the speed an object would need to get into orbit. What is low Earth orbit versus middle Earth orbit? The answer, we promise, has nothing to do with the presence of hobbits. Learn about plans to create an elevator to space. Why would it be useful and how could we do it? Plus, what would the space elevator music be?
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Science meets pop culture on StarTalk! Astrophysicist & Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, his comic co-hosts, guest celebrities & scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Keep Looking Up!
#StarTalk #neildegrassetyson
0:00 - Introduction
1:22 - Orbit
3:22 - Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
4:59 - Middle Earth Orbit (MEO)
6:00 - Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO)
8:01 - Geosynchronous Earth Orbit
8:35 - Space Elevators
10:21 - Banter
11:22 - Destroying Satellites
13:21 - Closing Notes

[@StarTalk]

What would you do if you ran into LEO, MEO and GEO in a dark alleyway?

[@bivayy]

I would fall away from Earth

[@markgigiel2722]

I would promise to have the money by tomorrow.

[@davidleedougherty6478]

I'd say it took you long enough.. What's the "hold up?"

[@VeganWithAraygun]

Paralyze them with my B-O ! 😜

[@richardatkins5249]

I'd say, "One of these days, all 3 of you cats are going to live in a house with a crazy lady."

[@Carolina_Rodriguez]

I’m going through a rough moment, and watching StarTalk has been a gift of a distraction, thank you

[@kindu812]

For me the same i am in rehab and constantly watching neil and chuck

[@davidevans3227]

Agree! i have chronic pulsating tinnitus and these really do help (distraction and so on..)

[@davidevans3227]

​@@kindu812 i remember seeing the green mile in rehab.. (2002) wow what a movie.. that was good and helpful

[@tylerramelfanger2586]

That's good, it's a healthier distraction than most

[@DungarSinghChauhan]

​@@davidevans3227that's treatable right?

[@Nefville]

Chuck is so fast on his feet. Absolutely hilarious, you guys work so well together I'm always excited to see a new video especially when its on something I think I know all about and Neil just has some way of making even known things fascinating.

[@dunderwood4444]

Lord Nice is indeed a intellectual man of mystery

[@StarTalk]

So glad to hear it! :)

[@objectivetruth453]

Glad you find him funny. I often stop watching once he starts talking. Hard to understand why he is on this show anyway. Cringe….

[@2MANYWWWWWWWWWWWWS4U]

Guessing Neil gives him the 'script' prior... and based off Neil's reactions, he doesn't tell Neil what he's gunna say 🤣

[@SamsonFernendez]

Chuck's beard is hideous tho

[@jdzazz4155]

Yet another fantastic explanation! I love how you make even complex topics easy to understand.

[@StarTalk]

We’ll keep doin’ it!

[@ThorPalsson]

I NEED to see Neil do more calculations in his mind. Truly fascinating to witness it happen. As a layman it opens ones mind to how the calculation makes sense Been listening for 5 years, thanks to a childhood friend who died on Christmas day 2021. Ölvir would have loved this video.

[@MaryAnnNytowl]

My sympathy for your loss, Bjarki. It's tough losing someone you care for near Christmas. (((((hugs)))))

[@ThorPalsson]

@@MaryAnnNytowl Thank you Mary

[@StarTalk]

Sorry for your loss, Bjarki. ❤️ Glad the magic of curiosity lives on in you!

[@ThorPalsson]

@@StarTalk It lives thanks to excellent science communicators, who I truly cherish.

[@markgigiel2722]

Neil probably knew that speed. It was for show. It's a sad commentary for the USA that we still need to do U.S. and metric conversions in the first place. We really resist progress and evolution in the U.S. A large percentage want us to actually go backwards.

[@hey.goldfish]

Can we all just acknowledge how amazing Chuck Nice is? Like, I know he's a comedian but he's so on point and he's so right there.

[@dteed6282]

Love starting my day learning about the universe with Neil & Chuck!

[@Thomas-dz4eg]

Our World was the first live, international, satellite television production, which was broadcast on 25 June 1967. Creative artists, including the Beatles, opera singer Maria Callas, and painter Pablo Picasso - representing nineteen nations - were invited to perform or appear in separate segments featuring their respective countries. The two-and-a-half-hour event had the largest television audience ever up to that date: an estimated 400 to 700 million people around the globe watched the broadcast. Today, it is most famous for the segment from the United Kingdom starring the Beatles. They performed their song "All You Need Is Love" for the first time to close the broadcast.

[@markgigiel2722]

We have come a long way technologically since then, fairly quickly. Too bad we haven't advanced/evolved enough as a species and are on the verge of causing our own extinction.

[@StarTalk]

Thanks for the info!

[@timknight5105]

Please do a video on how the space elevator would conceivably work! Sounds amazing!

[@StarTalk]

Noted! 🗒

[@robertmiller9735]

There's also the Molniya orbit, that allows you to approximate geostationary for high latitudes; polar orbit, that allows you to see the Earth's entire surface; and sun-synchronous orbit, that's almost a polar orbit but allows your satellite to always be in sunlight. That last is a popular one these days, which is why we're starting to see more high-latitude launch sites in places like Alaska and Scotland. The fourth country that tested an antisat was India.

[@StarTalk]

Thanks for the info!

[@murasaki848]

Awww... you beat me to it. I was going to mention Molniya under the heading of geosynchronous.

[@devilsephiroth9000]

Thank you guys for some interesting facts about our planet. Knowledge is truly power.

[@StarTalk]

It is 🙌

[@freakinschweeet]

No mention of HEO, highly elliptical orbit, like the Russian Molniya satellites.

[@robertlewis5439]

Nor Polar orbits (probably just a special case of HEO, come to think of it)

[@randomknowledgeperson2872]

chuck is perfect in these, always making jokes right when he needs to and not trying to step on neil’s heels and seem like he’s interrupting

[@pavonzelaschilautaro2305]

I will never get tired of hearing these two talk

[@25BDominique2021]

I did a data project not even 2 weeks ago and among some of the categories these orbits were mentioned. This video really helps, I want to go back and make some tweaks now that I have some more context. Thanks, Neil!

[@StarTalk]

Sounds like an interesting project! Glad we could teach you something!

[@dataecstasy]

This channel I can listen everynight until i sleep. space and stars eases you a bit....I remember when I was kid my grandfather used to tell stories of the stars....it kinds of reminds me that too...as always keep looking up.

[@AdamOn24s]

You two are the best keep them coming!

[@lisear2926]

Wonderfully understandable explanation🤗

[@prestigemarketing9202]

Chuck impersonating loan sharks made my day.

[@f.michaelbremer-cruz2708]

Thanks for this video as I learned a few things. The idea of a Space Elevator is truly intriguing. I wonder if we'll ever see one built. It could make space more accessible to average people who aren't Billionaires, actors, etc.

[@StarTalk]

That’s the hope!

[@Lanhoj]

*I'm here for the banter...* @10:21 The knowledge too, of course, but there's no discounting the value of the banter.

[@zanthornton]

Thank you for captions! Wish Brillant was as accessible!

[@tayzonday]

4:37 SIXTEEN Sunrises, not eighteen! ☀️🌞

[@MerxadMehr]

Exactly

[@julianb1550]

Can we do not only an explainer but an entire cosmic queries on MAGNETISM and our inability to understand it fully? Please?

[@StarTalk]

Noted! 🗒

[@benisaten]

Neil's laugh is brighter than a star.

[@faraja6807]

This is fantastic.. im enjoying every minute of it.

[@StarTalk]

So glad you’re enjoying :)

[@vinod8941]

Awesome video, great explanation. Next, Please do working of GPS satellites or Starlink satellites in detail. Also, it would be great if you add some animations or pictures in the video, that would really help in understanding. Anyways, always loved your videos.

[@jeanneborges6906]

Nicely explained

[@SteveC38]

Nice Job, Fellas!

[@Bratfalken]

I like Geo, the tv dish I installed 22 years ago still works with the same aim!

[@Cmaxb9]

Gotta love the Jean-Claude Van Damme reference ;) great explainer as always guys!

[@timothyvenable3336]

Very interested in the space elevator! Not sure how it would work or what it would be used for, but cool stuff! Love this show!

[@Bratfalken]

It is impossible, the weight of the rope would drag it down or snap it.

[@timothyvenable3336]

@@Bratfalken I’m sure it wouldn’t be a conventional elevator… something maybe like a fueling station or something…

[@MuhammadBesharat7]

Awesome 👏

[@takeoverusa]

You two always make me smile and laugh when I'm annoyed by my low earth orbit madness by observing those above and feeling the pain for those below like I can’t just go higher to find out why ant nobody answering the space signal phone . Again thanks for the laughs and smiles cause that’s not easy to do. Much Love to you and your family, you are appreciated. Aug 4 btw

[@jerlij1249]

Incredible 🔥

[@alanbrady420]

Good stuff

[@autumnhaywood1851]

You guys make doing the dishes after a long, hard day of parenting so much lighter. Thanks for you and doing what you do

[@Prince-Abdalla]

I am learning here, thanks

[@intellis]

Hi from Brazil 🇧🇷 I love the channel and never miss the chance to listen to some star talks. Like to see girl from Ipanema being mentioned. I have to agree that it would be such a boring elevator tough 😂

[@charlesmoen2433]

i remember going to the Andover Observatory in Maine as a kid! they had a camera that beamed our images off the Telstar satellite and showed on the tv monitor in the room ! I took their word for it!

[@karatsurba4791]

Fascinating to think how the space elevator would be designed to withstand different conditions.

[@RaySpillane]

Newton - "The guy was kinda smart, I gotta give it to him", classic, I almost choked on a mouthful of wine when that one came out!

[@lambrettabarnes7799]

If it was possible to have an elevator up to a space station in geo stationary orbit , when would weightlessness begin ?

[@eozineable]

I believe far, since you are never in freefall, you are essentially geostationary on all altitudes, so you'd need to go 37800km according to google to experience 0.3m/s2, as opposed to 9.81 on the ground

[@MrBonners]

weightlessness is the same as falling. you weigh zero. the only weight you would feel would be as the elevator accelerated/decelerated, steady travel speed you would be weightless.

[@hrgwea]

8:02 A geosynchronous orbit also has a period of one sideral day like the geostationary orbit. The difference is that the geostationary orbit is a circle over the equator (i.e. it has an angle of 90° with respect to the Earth's axis), whereas geosynchronous orbits can be circles as well as elipses with any angle.

[@Teo117]

Please continue to educate me. 😁

[@StarTalk]

Will do!

[@Teo117]

@@StarTalk I am grateful 🙏😊

[@dunderwood4444]

After consuming copious amounts of Majic mushrooms 🍄 I believe I had a moment with that trio. Bless up from Brooklyn NY. Outstanding episode Sir's It would be an understatement to state that within 8 hours I may have orbited Jupiter. (Mushrooms were supplied by a licensed provider/ Doctor and staff were in Colorado facility. Leo, Geo and Neo. We will meet again. Going back for another session in 6 months

[@CosmicShieldMaiden]

🖖

[@aidanm2528]

Genesis 2 16. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree in the garden, 17. But you shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for in the day that you eat of it in dying you shall surely die.” Genesis 3 4. And the serpent said to the woman, “In dying, you shall not surely die! 5. For God knows that in the day you eat of it, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be like God, deciding good and evil.” 6. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleas- ing to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7. And the eyes of both of them were opened. 14. And the LORD God said to the ser- pent, “Because you have done this you are cursed above all livestock, and above every animal of the field. You shall go upon your belly, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. 16. To the woman He said, “I will greatly increase your sorrow and your conception-in sorrow shall you bring forth children. Your desire shall be to- ward your husband, and he shall rule over you.” 17. And to Adam He said, “Because you have hearkened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree-of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it!’-the ground is cursed for your sake. In sorrow shall you eat of it all the days of your life. Repent in Jesus name so that this curse may be taken away from you. (Original translate)

[@dunderwood4444]

@@aidanm2528 Someone needs a hug and some therapy. Thank you for projecting.

[@aidanm2528]

@@dunderwood4444 Terence Mckenna was threatened by a demon on one of his trips , he was told if he returns again he would be locked up for an eternity , also he found out before he died that he had a mushroom shaped tumour in his brain after having used mushrooms for years ,he was shocked when doctors told him this and he died from it. Matthew 16:19 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be[a] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be[b]loosed in heaven.”

[@aidanm2528]

@@dunderwood4444 Then a terrible war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the great dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back.

[@raymondjmetcalfe2927]

Arthur C Clarke wrote a novel based on the idea on a space elevator

[@rickkwitkoski1976]

Yes he did. Taking his OWN idea about GEO satellites as the basis for the plot.

[@catmate8358]

This was fun. So A. Clarke invented the com sats and Isac Asimov invented the LEO way back in the 17th century, now that was one mighty feat of imagination! :)

[@iramkumar78]

Chucks Italian accent is great. Laughing! Happy to see Neil laughing. No CP Snow. Red Pill. Trinity and Neo.

[@arsx4948]

Wished you would also state the measurements in metric. Believe it or not, there are many people who have to convert from US Customary units.

[@carpalway]

Now I get the "foundation's" elevator. Thanx

[@ronbednarczyk2497]

It was great seeing you in Huntsville on June 12th. My son's & I delayed our vacation two days in order to see your postponed talk. Did you do anything interesting in Huntsville between June 8 & 12?

[@swinde]

One weird thing about orbits is that you have to increase velocity to reach a higher orbit, but when you circlize, your orbital speed will be slower that it was in the lower orbit.

[@shawnfike2910]

Good space-elevator music? Easy - "Stairway to Heaven"

[@cobhc1227]

love you guys 😢

[@harshsharma7154]

Neil, i wonder what's the shift from Euclidean geometry to non euclidean is like ? Why do we need non euclidean geometry at the first place?

[@leftofright]

hi tensile electrical braided lines supported by ion drives at intervals on the way up to cancel out accumulated gravitational mass would work i recon but it wouldn't be cheap

[@eddybajan]

Chack Nice you are so funny! Love your joke from Italia 😃

[@isaackitone]

Leo, Meo and Geo.... Those scary Italians.

[@irishdruidess7391]

Neil has to explain such things as it is never seen by anyone!

[@arsx4948]

What about Molniya orbit? (Is Tundra also an orbit?) Hoping to hear about those too.

[@freddiewyman]

Freddie from Brevard County, FL. I need another Explained on this one. When I was young, my father spoke of this theory that over long periods of time each planet in our solar system moves closer and closer to the sun. I understand how this can this can be discounted as planets are moving with a constant velocity(acceleration?), encountering no resistance, through the "vacuum" of space, allowing them to maintain their orbits.However, suppose an asteroid, comet, or meteor impacted the surface of a celestial body orbiting another with immense force, and possibly at a tangential angle opposite to its motion in orbit. Could this theoretically slow the orbiting body so much that it loses the velocity(/acceleration?) necessary to maintain its own orbit? If yes, then would it it be likely for the orbiting body to fall into the body its orbiting as our own satellites sometimes do? And if yes, why have I heard that the moon's orbit is slowly moving away from Earth's (about 1 1/2" a year) when the moon is (as we can plainly see) often bombarded these types of objects? Is this just a false fact that I was taught in elementary school? Please help me out.

[@juliebunderson6201]

It would have been awesome for you to go into which one of those the moon fits into, and WTF happened when it got hit by something back in March.

[@eozineable]

It was a Chineese rocket if i recall

[@StarTalk]

We covered the rocket crash on the Moon back in March! ;) kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHmXkmeXl82EbKs

[@Fister_of_Muppets]

Neil: "If you want to be parked, we call that geostationary." If you want to be "double-parked," we call that the Riley Reed orbit.

[@paulgracey4697]

Telstar was not a synchronous satellite. Only brief television signals could be broadcast from Europe to North America were available and we knew right away that a large number would need to be launched. I worked at Hughes Aircraft Co. at the time that their company financed Syncom 1 was launched, making ATT's Bell Labs scheme for large, tracking dishes at much greater expense, obsolete. Now we are revisiting the tracking ground station idea and swarms of LEO satellites with much cheaper automated versions possible.

[@TheKki2]

That intro had me literally dying in laughter.

[@sinarylarryhuva1850]

Chuck is dope 😀

[@gelle00]

Neil and Chuck, have you done a star talk about light/electromagnetic spectrum? Like a broad overview? I have so many questions. If a photon is massless why does it have a speed limit or why does it react to gravity or why does it knock around quantum particles? How does a being in the 4th dimension perceive the electromagnetic spectrum with respect to time? What can I do to join the podcast to ask these questions? I don't really have any credentials except that I went to college for engineering and have done open mic stand up. I am like a combo of the two of you except significantly less knowledgeable than Neil and half as funny as chuck. Although I do think Chuck and I would have some good laughs.

[@godseed7984]

Tell us about orbital rings

[@sparkyprojects]

I always thought it was LEO NEO GEO (near earth orbit) MEO would be an orbit was around New Zealand :D

[@davidvegabravo1579]

GREETINGS FROM CHILEEEEEE.

[@joncote6035]

Does debris always slow down little by little? Is there enough atmosphere out at further or it’s to continue this process so eventually the debris field will dissipate?

[@eozineable]

Since it is so small and usually very high speed, forces impacting it are barely noticeable, and since there is no atmosphere, there is no friction also, it will outlive us is what i'm trying to say

[@joncote6035]

@@eozineable no atmosphere is an exaggeration. The atmosphere doesn’t end, it thins infinitely close to zero. But I get your point. Too fast, too small, too little resistance. Deceleration is on a very long scale, got it.

[@eozineable]

@@joncote6035 Ye ye obviously, it is never truly zero even in vacuum

[@rickkwitkoski1976]

@@joncote6035 Yes, debris slows down because there is a tiny bit of atmosphere. The ISS has to be moved to a higher orbit every so often. It is in LEO.

[@jamessoldi3975]

One big error here. Geosynchronous orbits are not an integer number of orbits per one Earth rotation. They are the same period as Earth rotation just like geostationary, but they may be inclined relative to the equatorial plane and thus don't stay above the same exact location above the Earth. The form a figure 8 with height equal to the inclination when viewed from the ground. So, geostationary are special case of geosynchronous with zero inclination and thus appear to be at a stationary location relative to the ground.

[@babasemka]

Not sure if I got the whole thing right, but I want to ask: What prevents a satellite or whatever body that is orbiting the Earth to have a geosynchronous orbit at lower altitude than "THE" geosynchronous orbit that is set in stone? In other words why cannot GEO be MEO at the same time?

[@Rebel7284]

You end up moving too slowly and fall back down to Earth. I mean, technically you can do it for a while if you keep using fuel, but if you want to just shoot it into orbit and have it stay there, it needs to move at a certain speed and that speed in low earth orbit is WAY too fast to be geosynchronous.

[@01evansa]

If you are being pulled up in a space elevator, then you wouldn't need to travel faster than the escape velocity.

[@michaelcato9255]

You're not gonna see him but he's always gonna be there watching you.

[@factsvalleyshorts8487]

The Legend Neil deGrasse Tyson!

[@PeteVanDemark]

What supports the orbiting platform from which the rope is dropped to Earth? How would the elevator rise instead of pulling the platform back down to Earth?

[@swinde]

Since the "rope" of the "space elevator" will occupy positions from the ground all the way up to the "anchor" satellite, how is any "orbit" stabilized? Would the "anchor be at 22,500 miles or would it be higher. Is there some kind of special math for this very strange orbit? Would the "car" climbing the "rope" alter the orbit in any way? What if a large aircraft crashes into the rope at a lower altitude?

[@aikidoshi007]

If it was possible to create a tethered GEO station, everything in LEO and MEO would keep crashing into your tether. Good luck with that.

[@rickkwitkoski1976]

Ummm... NO! GEO and MEO are not just around the equator. They are at an angle. The ISS is such and almost everything else is as well.

[@aikidoshi007]

@@rickkwitkoski1976 I think no matter where the GEO station was, there would be a lot of junk in the LEO and MEO layers below that would take it out.

[@dragonracer7383]

I suggest rftools for auto crafting storage reading

[@leftofright]

If say the earth was sped up considerably, so much so that our mass was 50% what it is now, imagine how different things might be, the height say of trees and waves, and mountains etc, the nature of the planet would be very different

[@evankrause2304]

*My need to play KSP intensifies*

[@felixguilbeault6329]

So now I have a vision of a giraffe with a baseball glove on NASA's wanted list.

[@blackbloodcells5142]

Can anyone tell me how mass changes by speed? I'm talking about the Lorentz factor. What properties of the atoms change? What is going on ? I would appreciate it if someone could give me a topic or title to search for

[@danielpaulson8838]

It is the 'inertial' mass which increases as speed increases. The physical mass itself does not increase. You're right to question that. It's a necessary detail.

[@rob_i208]

5:45 The higher your orbit is the longer your orbit it takes you to complete an orbit. Because your moving slower and slower, and the distances are getting bigger and bigger. All of this is true, except you actually need to accelerate faster and faster. However because the distance to complete an orbit around the Earth becomes much much greater as your altitude increases, the amount of distance transited over the Earth's surface over time is less and less.

[@Dad_Brad]

It would be fun to “drop” a tiny satellite from geostationary (just a slight boost towards earth) and watch how long it takes to fall to earth. It’s velocity towards earth should be really really fast by the time it gets to the atmosphere.

[@rob_i208]

@@Dad_Brad That's not really how orbits work. You could launch something to geostationary orbital altitude and never accelerate it to orbit, but you wouldn't need to "boost" it towards Earth. It would just fall under gravity. However to answer your question it wouldn't be going any more or less faster than dropping it from virtually any other altitude. Gravity would accelerate to terminal velocity. Not possible for gravity to accelerate it beyond that.

[@Dad_Brad]

@@rob_i208 I see your point. I think that’s right. I remember a thought experiment about drilling a hole all the way through the center of the earth. If you create the tunnel so that it’s a vacuum inside with no resistance- if you dropped an object down the tunnel it would accelerate to a speed of orbital velocity as it passes through the center of the earth. Slowly decelerating again as it comes closer to the other end of the tunnel. If one person was standing in Peru, the other end of the tunnel would be in Vietnam. Earth Sandwich.

[@djnostep]

Question if there's less friction in space couldnt you build a generator that is constantly making electrons? Therefore speeding up the battery shortage issue on earth.

[@rickkwitkoski1976]

you can't MAKE electrons!

[@djnostep]

@@rickkwitkoski1976 how so?

[@yourguard4]

The question, nobody asks for: If somehow the ground stops interacting with you, and you fall just through it, in which orbit would you end up? BEO (below earth orbit) ?

[@GuardianSoulkeeper]

You'd orbit the earth. That orbit would be *inside* the Earth but it would still technically be an orbit.

[@jmanj3917]

Yeah, we're definitely the "Bundy Family" of the local group

[@meliferra1913]

Me, too. I like it.

[@coffinsmokej7408]

How fast would you have to go in order for air resistance to feel solid when you hit it ? Just leaving this here for the random smart people.

[@victorrutledge257]

A geosynchronous orbit is that high Earth orbit allowing satellites to match Earth's rotation. Geostationary, which is located at 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above Earth's equator, requires constant maintenance to keep the platform exactly above the earth location you choose. And "the planets" is one track from the "space elevator" music, along with classic Rock from CCR, and the Stones. Beyond that, the Aliens who come by Earth probably just say, "They're rednecks, just ignore them."

[@OZtwo]

yes, but they forgot about the overall weight of the elevator itself as only a very small fraction of the elevator structure is weightless.

[@josephpiezasb8770]

Whats the G stand for of GEO?

[@bored9260]

I wish we could but the gravity itself would be to intense the metal would be constantly tested by heat from the gravity

[@Vincent-2057]

I hope that song/joke is still relevant by the time we get space elevators... Cos it has to be done. Even if it is just the first person to ride it playing it in their phone. Cos the lift is gonna have to come with WiFi..

[@astro9219]

That would be one scary elevator especially if it had glass doors.

[@Dad_Brad]

Dropping a rope down from geostationary orbit all the way to my backyard sounds interesting, but I wonder what the weight of the rope would do. Wouldn’t it’s weight cause the satellite to fall down unless you used a rocket motor to keep the satellite at orbital velocity?

[@irishdruidess7391]

How does a rocket propel in a vacuum? Too many silly stories about space to keep the contradiction at bay.

[@Dad_Brad]

@@irishdruidess7391 space is real.

[@fromnorway643]

The rope would need to continue farther into space with a counterweight at its end to cancel out the weight of the rope beneath the satellite. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_elevator

[@eozineable]

@@irishdruidess7391 two tanks, one with oxygen, the other with combustibles, put them in the same tube, light em up, facing the vacuum Next question

[@JohnyG29]

The satellite would already have the weight of the rope since launch. The weight wouldn't increase just because you lowered the rope, because its already there.

[@nHans]

Also, geostationary satellites need to be directly above the equator, otherwise they won't be geostationary even if they're at the correct altitude. BTW, the ISS doesn't orbit above the equator. Its orbit is at an inclination of about 52° to the equator. Coupled with Earth's rotation around itself, the ISS appears to move in a wavy path above Earth.

[@Vedoibambinipovri]

For a second I thought you released a Raid Shadow Legends video.