Artificial Satellites:

A celestial body orbiting another celestial body of larger size

is a satellite. An artificial satellite is a manufactured object or vehicle
intended to orbit the earth, the moon, or another celestial body. Since October
4th, 1957 humanity is capable of putting artificial satellites in orbit around the
earth. The Russians were the first with Sputnik; a small satellite that orbited
the earth for a couple of months and transmitted beeps for 21 days.

The USA launched its first satellite on January 31st, 1958. This satellite was
named Explorer 1, and through the data transmitted back to earth by Explorer 1,
scientists discovered the van Allen radiation belts, zones in space around the
earth, and the planets Jupiter and Saturn, containing high-energy protons and
electrons.

50 years ago artificial satellites did not exist. Since Sputnik more than 4800
satellites have been launched by governments and private companies around the
world. Satellites are used for satellite TV of course, but there are many more
purposes for satellites.

Types of Satellites

The Moon is a satellite of the earth; the earth is a satellite of

the sun. The is first called a moon, the second a planet. Man made (artificial)
satellites orbit any celestial body and are always called a satellite, whether
they orbit the earth, the moon, the sun or any other celestial body.

We use satellites for different purposes and all satellites can be placed in one
of the following categories:

Communications Satellites:

Distribution of television and audio signals, and telephone

connections via satellite are done by Communications Satellites. These types of
communications typically need a satellite in geostationary orbit. In 1964 the US
Department of Defense launched the first satellite that was placed in
geostationary orbit. This satellite was named Syncom 3.

Today geostationary satellites are used to provide voice, audio and video
communications.

Navigation Satellites:

These satellites were of enormous help to transportation

companies, especially transportation over water and through the air. The US GPS
satellites are in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and can determine position with a
precision of 1 cm (0.4 inch). However, that very precise positioning is available
for military purposes only. For commercial use the precision is less accurate.

Navigation satellites are also used for distance measurements for instance between
buildings.

Weather Satellites
 Observing the earth is the task for weather satellites, and then
especially what happens in the atmosphere. Different kinds of cameras, like
infrared and normal cameras are used to observe either the same part of the earth,
from a geostationary orbit, or more closely from polar orbits to get more detailed
pictures. These low orbit weather satellites focus more on the study of the
atmosphere than on the current weather it self.

Military Satellites:

Very similar to weather satellites, military satellites are also

used for observing the earth. Generally with higher resolution cameras and instead
of normal communications equipment, they use encryption as well. Sometimes these
types of satellites have very different types of orbits. For instance a very
elliptical orbit which brings the satellite as far away from the earth as the moon
and as close to the earth that it shortly enters the atmosphere, to get as close
as possible to the earth surface without falling back to earth.

Probably many more tactics are used, but for obvious reasons, these are unknown.

scientific Satellites:

Observing the earth for scientific purposes is also very good possible with
satellites. Making maps with low polar orbits satellites for instance, but also
measuring the exact shape of the earth, geological research, etc can all benefit
greatly from scientific satellites.

But scientific satellites are not just used for observing the earth. The research
of space benefits also from scientific satellites. For instance the Hubble
Satellite which actually is a huge telescope that orbits the earth. Because the
Hubble telescope doesn�t have to �see� through the atmosphere it can produce much
clearer and detailed images than earth based telescopes.

Disposal of Satellites

Depending on the mission of a satellite, it will eventually be no

longer useful. Some satellites end their useful life when falling out of orbit and
burning up in the atmosphere. Others continue to orbit the earth long after the
mission has ended.

Depending on the altitude of the orbit, a satellite will either stay in orbit or
fall back to earth. Below 1000 km (620 miles) satellites experience friction from
the atmosphere which slows them down and because of that the altitude of the orbit
decreases until eventually the satellite falls out of orbit and plunges back to
earth where it burns up in the atmosphere. Heavy but small satellites maintain
their orbits longer than light, but big satellites. A higher mass has more kinetic
energy than a small mass, so more friction is needed to slow the satellite down.
(it is like a big heavy cargo train, it just stops much slower than a normal car).

The First Satellites

In 1957 the Soviet Union launched successfully the first satellite

(Sputnik) that orbited the earth. Sputnik had an elliptical orbit with a minimum
altitude of 225 km (140 miles) and a maximum altitude of 900 km (559 miles). It
stayed in orbit for about 3 months after which is fell back to earth and burned up
in the atmosphere.

The USA successfully launched its first satellite (Explorer 1) in 1958. The orbit
was very much more elliptical with a minimum altitude of 360 km (224 miles) and a
maximum altitude of 2500 km (1553 miles). During this first mission scientists
discovered the Van Allen Radiation Belts; zones in space around the earth, and the
planets Jupiter and Saturn, containing high-energy protons and electrons.

In 1960 the USA launched a satellite that brought with it the first artificial
object that was ever recovered from space. The satellite rejected a capsule which
fell back to earth and was later recovered. This mission led the way to photos of
the earth taken from a satellite to be recovered.

Current Count of Satellites

Because of the many launched of satellites (over 4800) the

earth is now surrounded by artificial debris. This debris ranges from small
objects like astronauts gloves and tools to very big objects like obsolete
satellites and used rocket parts. There have been over 25.000 individual objects
cataloged of which over 8000 are still in orbit. The rest fell back to earth and
burned up in the atmosphere.

There is a good reason for cataloging all space debris. When a satellite launch is
planned the path of the satellite is known and is checked against the catalog of
space debris. You can imagine that a collision with an old part of a previously
launched rocket would be disastrous. But even collisions with relatively small
debris can cause huge problems. A screwdriver in orbit can have a speed of 27.000
km (16.777 miles) per hour. If this tiny screwdriver hits the space shuttle for
instance it will blast a hole in the shuttle, killing all people inside. Space
debris is actually becoming a problem especially for missions in low earth orbit

Satellite Orbits

Any object that moves around the earth has an orbit. The orbit is
defined by 3 factors. The first is the shape of the orbit, which can be circular
or elliptical. The second is the altitude of the orbit. The altitude is constant
for a circular orbit but changes constantly for an elliptical orbit. The third
factor is the angle the orbit makes with the equator. An orbit that brings the
satellite over the poles or close to it has a large angle. An orbit that makes the
satellite stay close to the equator has a small angle.

Orbits depend on the mission the satellite was built for. The following orbits can
be defined:

Low Earth Orbit

Satellites in low earth orbit (LEO) orbit the earth at altitudes of less
than 2000 km (1242 miles). Satellites in LEO can get much clearer surveillance
images and require much less power to transmit their data to the earth.

Medium Earth Orbit

At an altitude of around 10.000 km (6.000 miles) a satellite is in

medium earth orbit (MEO). This altitude balances the advantages and disadvantages
of LEO and GEO. MEO�s are used generally for navigational satellites and
communications satellites

Geostationary Orbit

A satellite in geostationary orbit orbits the earth in exactly 1 day

and is placed above the equator. The angle with the equator is 0 degrees. As a
result the satellite seems to stand still as seen from the earth. These satellites
are used for communications and Satellite TV.

Polar Orbit

An orbit that goes over both the North and the South Pole is called a
Polar Orbit. The angle with the equator is 90 degrees. The advantage of these
orbits is that they go over the poles. This may sound funny, but in reality most
satellites never �see� the poles. Most polar orbits are in LEO, but any altitude
can be used for a polar orbit.

Polar orbits are used a lot by navigation satellites which have to provide
navigational information all over the world, including the poles.

Sun Synchronous Orbit

This is a very interesting type of orbit. Satellites in Sun

Synchronous Orbit pass over the same locations on earth at the same time each day.
Suppose a satellite in sun synchronous orbit passes over your house at 3 pm. The
next time the satellite will pass over your house is 24 hours later at the same
time the next day.

In order to do this the satellite has a very special orbit. Not only does it orbit
the earth, but the plane of the orbit changes as well. It has to do this because
each day the earth moves a bit through space around. After 3 months, the earth has
moved 90 degrees of its orbit around the sun. If the satellites orbit wouldn�t
have moved with it, it would show up 6 hours later than planned. (Actually the
earth spins around its axis in approx. 23 hours, 56 minutes and 3 seconds and not
in 24 hours. Because of the earth�s orbit around the sun, 1 day lasts 24 hours. A
star day however is approx. 23 hours, 56 minutes and 3 seconds long.)

However, there is no need to actively change the plane of the orbit. The earth is
not a perfect sphere but is a little bit wider around the equator. This is caused
by the spinning of the earth. The gravitational difference this causes changes the
orbit of a satellite. When the angle with the equator is chosen correctly (approx.
8 degrees of a polar orbit), an orbit is a sun synchronous orbit.

A very special type of sun synchronous orbit is called the dawn-to-dusk orbit.
This orbit is above the earth where the sun comes up or goes down. A satellite in
this orbit never enters the shadow of the earth but always receives sunlight.

Orbit Decay and Reentry

The earth�s atmosphere doesn�t stop at a certain altitude but

really fades out into space. The higher you get the less thick it is until
eventually there is no more atmosphere. Generally we say that the atmosphere is
about 100 km (62 miles) thick, but in reality it extends much further out into
space. Satellites experience friction from the atmosphere up to altitudes of 1000
km (620 miles).
Due to the friction, a satellite will loose speed and with that the altitude will
decrease until eventually the satellite will fall out of orbit back to the earth.
Depending on the altitude this happens sooner or later. A satellite at an altitude
of 200 km (124 miles) will stay in orbit for just a couple of months. At 300 km
(186 miles) a satellite can stay in orbit for a couple of years. Above 1000 km
(620 miles) a satellite can stay in orbit for thousands of years.

Letting Satellites fall back to earth and burn up in the atmosphere is also a way
of disposal of satellites

Satellite Launches

A satellite is built in such a way that it is as light as possible.

This way it can carry more fuel with it, which increases its life in orbit. The
total weight is determined by the rocket(s) that carry the satellite into space.
The rocket is able to bring a certain amount of weight into orbit and this is
something the manufacturer of the satellite has to take into account when
designing a new satellite.

In order to bring a satellite into space it needs to first enter a

low earth orbit (LEO). To get into LEO the rocket needs to reach an altitude of at
least 200 km (120 miles) and a speed of no less than 29.000 km per hour (18.000
miles per hour). This is the most difficult and expensive part of the launch of a
satellite. There is an enormous amount of energy needed to reach LEO.

Generally 2 rocket stages are needed to bring a satellite into LEO.

The first rocket stage brings the rocket up into the thinner air at higher
altitudes and speeds the rocket up enough to have the second stage bring the rest
into LEO. Depending on the mission a third rocket stage is used to bring the
satellite into higher orbits, for instance a geostationary orbit.

Operations in Space

Once they are in space satellites need to be completely self-

sustained, since they can not receive power from earth. They also need to be able
to survive the launch, which is not a soft ride. Once in space the satellite needs
to generate its own power, being able to orient it self, dissipate heat, deal with
cosmic radiation and protect it self from micro meteors.

Power

Electricity is the main form of energy for all equipment on board and
for orientation. Fuel is on board for moving the position or changing the orbit.
In case of a geostationary orbit, the satellite needs to be kept inside a
imaginary box so that it always stays in the same place as seen from earth. In
case of other satellites, fuel can be used to change the orbit, or maintain an
orbit. A satellite in low earth orbit for instance still receives a tiny bit of
friction from the atmosphere which causes it to slow down and eventually fall back
to earth. A slight boast every now and then to speed the satellite up ensures that
it stays in orbit.

Electricity comes from solar panels with a battery back for when the solar panels
do not receive sunlight and for when the solar panels aren�t deployed yet.

Orientation
 Orientation of the satellite is extremely difficult. In case of a
geostationary satellite it is like aiming a light beam on a dartboard that has
been placed 300 feet away, while at the same time going around the dartboard in 24
hours. When you do that, you have a reference, the ground. A satellite doesn�t
have this fixed reference and needs to create this reference by it self.

A satellite creates its own reference through the use of spinning wheels. A
spinning wheel has the property that the axis maintains it position due to the
centrifugal force as it spins. - This effect can also be seen in a spinning top.
It maintains its upright position when it spins. - Slowing the wheels down or
speeding them up a bit is also used to change the orientation of the satellite,
hence ensuring that the antennas always point in the direction of the covered area
on the earth.

Heat Dissipation

Space is cold; its temperature is almost absolute zero. But objects in

space can be hot, especially when close to a hot celestial body like the sun. Our
very existence depends on the energy the sun gives us. The same goes for
satellites; their main source of energy is the sun. A satellite heats up because
it is exposed to sunlight. Also the electronic equipment inside the satellite
generates heat.

On earth there are 3 ways to dissipate heat from a body. Through convection heat
energy can be given to the passing air which then transports the heat away.
Through conduction, which means the heat is transferred to another body. Another
possibility is through radiation.

A satellite has no other option than to use radiation to dissipate heat as there
are no other bodies around and no air to cool them. It radiates the heat energy
through louvered panels, meaning that they do not face the sun so that they don�t
collect heat, but just radiate the heat in the direction of black space, which is
very cold.

Cosmic Radiation and Micro meteor Protection

The earth is protected by its atmosphere

from most cosmic radiation and small meteors. In space a satellite needs to have
its own protection. Shielding of all electronic equipment is necessary, especially
computer circuits which are so small that very low levels of radiation can already
do damage. A satellite collides with very small meteors which damage solar panels
and other equipment that is exposed to space.

Even though small meteors do not disable a satellite, it does have an impact on
its life span. Solar panels will gradually produce less power because more and
more solar sells will be disabled over time.

Another effect that radiation has is that materials

can become brittle. This effect can also be seen in plastics that have been
exposed to sunlight for a long time.

Over all a satellite has a hard time living in space. Even

though Space seems to be just an empty whole of nothing, it actually is a very
unfriendly environment full of invisible damaging radiation and tiny particles
(meteors) that are dangerous because of their high speeds.