Mobile Newsletter chat close. Mobile Newsletter chat dots. Mobile Newsletter chat avatar. Mobile Newsletter chat subscribe. Prev NEXT. Space Exploration. Photo courtesy NASA. Weather satellites help meteorologists predict the weather or see what's happening at the moment.
These satellites generally contain cameras that can return photos of Earth's weather, either from fixed geostationary positions or from polar orbits. Communications satellites allow telephone and data conversations to be relayed through the satellite. Typical communications satellites include Telstar and Intelsat. The most important feature of a communications satellite is the transponder -- a radio that receives a conversation at one frequency and then amplifies it and retransmits it back to Earth on another frequency.
A satellite normally contains hundreds or thousands of transponders. Typically they send information via radio signals back to earth, which are received by antennas. Fun topic to wonder about, huh Jacob? Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention, Jordy! We have corrected the text. If you like Xbox, be sure to check out these Wonders about video games!
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When satellites stop working or "die," they become "space junk" and rotate the globe until gravitational forces pull them back down to Earth! You can read more about space junk and satellites by exploring that highlighted "the sky is falling!
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When was the first satellite launched into orbit? Wonder What's Next? Do you have to have a big brain to be smart? Find out tomorrow in Wonderopolis! Try It Out Aren't satellites out of this world? Be sure to explore the following activities with a friend or family member: Ready to see for yourself the forces that keep satellites orbiting in space? If you've got a rubber band, some tape, and a ping pong ball, try the Ping Pong Challenge activity online to answer the question of how satellites stay in orbit.
Scroll down the page to find the Ping Pong Challenge. Satellites have given us some of the coolest images of our world that people have ever seen. Are any of the satellites directly above where you are right now? Check the paths at various times to learn when particular satellites pass above your area. Did you get it?
Test your knowledge. What are you wondering? Wonder Words orbit navigate natural artificial communication global gravity place moon sky need song enjoy object focus television endangered spacious Take the Wonder Word Challenge. Join the Discussion. Logan Nov 21, I have never thought of this why. Nov 23, That's great, Logan. Thanks for sharing. Hope Nov 7, A satellite is any object that orbits goes around a planet or a star.
Our moon is a natural satellite because it orbits the earth. The earth itself is a natural satellite of the sun, because it revolves around the sun. All of the planets in our solar system are satellites of the sun. Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune all have multiple moons that orbit them.
Their moons are satellites of those planets. Our solar system has over known natural satellites. There are also artificial , man-made satellites that are in orbit around the earth.
These are the fast-moving objects you can often see in the night sky. They are deliberately launched into orbit around a body in space, usually with a specific job to do that involves receiving and sending back information to Earth. Why are they out there? How do they work? Let's find out more about satellites. The first artificial satellite was called Sputnik 1. Sputnik was a small aluminum ball, about the size of a beach ball, with four long antennas and powered by batteries. Inside Sputnik were radio transmitters that sent out a "beep, beep" sound that was heard all over the world.
Sputnik only transmitted a signal for about three weeks, but this small and simple satellite marked the beginning of the Space Age. Soon after, Sputnik 2 carried the first living passenger into orbit, a dog named Laika. In , the United States launched its first satellite, Explorer 1. A year later, NASA's Explorer 6 sent the first satellite pictures of Earth, and by , the first orbiting satellite provided long-term service to the Earth.
Since that time, the number of satellites and their complexity has continued to increase. Since , more than 8, satellites from more than 50 countries have been launched. Today, about 3, man-made satellites remain in orbit, with about 1, of them currently functioning.
If you go outside on a clear night and see a bright light speeding across the sky, it may well be a satellite reflecting the light of the Sun. Satellites come in many shapes and sizes. They can be as small as your hand or as large as a truck. But most have similar parts. The bus, or container, is the main body of the satellite. Attached to the bus are antennas that receive and send signals back to Earth. Because satellites have to power themselves, they all have a power source, usually solar panels or batteries.
Earth-orbiting satellites have instruments, such as cameras and sensors, that are pointed toward Earth to gather information about our planet. Other satellites have instruments facing toward space to collect data from the solar system and universe. Most artificial satellites orbit the earth, but some orbit other planets, such as Mars, Venus, and Saturn, and still others orbit the Sun. Some satellites help people send information around the world.
Information from a ground station on Earth can be sent to an orbiting satellite that bounces it back to receivers at another location on Earth. Other types of satellites take pictures or gather data about our planet and send that data back to Earth. Satellites in space help us overcome the limitations of Earth's geography. They can collect and send more information, more quickly, than instruments on the ground. Satellites are launched into space on rockets.
How do they stay in orbit? A satellite orbits Earth when its speed is balanced by the pull of Earth's gravity. Without this balance, the satellite would fly in a straight line off into space or fall back to Earth. Orbital velocity is the speed needed to achieve balance between gravity's pull on the satellite and the satellite's tendency to keep going.
At the correct orbital velocity, gravity pulls down toward Earth's center just enough to keep the path of the satellite curving like Earth's curved surface. The orbital velocity of the satellite changes depending on its altitude above Earth. Those satellites that are closer to the earth must move faster to stay in orbit.
The higher the orbit, the longer the satellite can stay in orbit. At lower altitudes, traces of Earth's atmosphere create drag , which sometimes causes the orbit to change. At higher altitudes, where there are no traces of atmosphere, a satellite can stay in orbit for centuries. Can satellites collide in space? It's possible. NASA and other international organizations keep track of satellites in space. When a satellite is launched, it is placed into an orbit designed to avoid other satellites.
But orbits can change over time, and with more satellites, the chance of a crash increases. In , an American satellite and a Russian satellite accidentally collided in space. Watch NASA scientists avert a close call between two satellites.
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