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Astrophysics Physics Related Questions

What is a geostationary orbit and why is it at 35,786 km? Why the geostationary orbit is at 35,786 km when
it's possible to take the satellite to higher orbit and
5 Answers make it faster/slower accordingly?

Robert Frost, Engineer with specialization in spacecraft operations, orbital What is the difference between geostationary and
mechanics, and guidance, navigation and cont... geosynchronous orbits?
Answered Jan 10 2013 · Author has 7.5k answers and 152.2m answer views
Geostationary satellites orbit 35,786 km above the
A geostationary orbit is an orbit over the equator in which the speed of the satellite is Earth’s surface. Earth’s radius is roughly 6,371 km.
exactly what is needed to stay over the same spot on the Earth, as the Earth spins, below.  If the earth was the size of a basketb...
A point on the equator is moving at 1669.8 km/hr.  But a satellite above that point will need
to be moving faster (11,068 km/hr), because its orbit has a greater circumference than the Why doesn't geostationary orbit depend on the
speed of the satellite?
Earth.
Why do geostationary satellites orbit the equator?
An object in orbit is traveling at just the right speed so that the combination of its forward
velocity and the downward vector of it free falling towards the Earth due to gravity What is special about a geostationary orbit?
combine to produce a curve that circles th...(more)
Can a natural satellite exist in a geostationary
orbit?
Related Questions More Answers Below
How big is the Earth when viewed from a
geostationary orbit?
Why the geostationary orbit is at 35,786 km when it's possible to take the satellite to higher
orbit and make it faster/slower accordingly? What is the distance of a geostationary orbit from
Earth?
What is the difference between geostationary and geosynchronous orbits?
Why is SpaceX sending a satellite 80,000 km from
Geostationary satellites orbit 35,786 km above the Earth’s surface. Earth’s radius is roughly
Earth when the geostationary orbit is 36,000 km?
6,371 km. If the earth was the size of a basketb...

Why doesn't geostationary orbit depend on the speed of the satellite?

Why do geostationary satellites orbit the equator?

Karan Desai, works at Akamai Technologies

Answered Jan 10, 2013 · Author has 121 answers and 607.2k answer views

Robert Frost gave the perfect scientific answer, but since your question asks what is its
significance from a layman's point of view, I'll answer in simple layman's terms-

35,786 km is that "perfect" distance to place a satellite where the time taken by it to
complete one orbit around the Earth is exactly equal to one day on Earth, so to a person
standing at the Earth's surface looking at that satellite, it appears that the satellite is not
moving at all i.e. it is geo-stationary.

It's significance is that since now the satellite always appears to be at the same point in
the sky, you can...(more)

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Ben Barlow, BA Marketing, The University of Utah (2011)
Updated Oct 22, 2019

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Máté Kovács, dabbles in physics

Answered Jan 10, 2013 · Author has 412 answers and 1.4m answer views

Part of the question hasn't been addressed yet: why is there only one geostationary orbit?
Wouldn't other ones with the same radius work?

The answer to that part is: no, there's only one, and here's why.
The plane of an orbit always goes through Earth's center of gravity. This still gives us a lot
of circular orbits with the given 1-day period. But here's the catch: if its orbital plane
doesn't coincide with the equatorial plane, the satellite will still wander around as seen
from Earth. Related Questions

There's only one circular orbit with a 1-day period [*] on the equatorial plane, and it's called Why the geostationary orbit is at 35,786 km when
the ...(more) it's possible to take the satellite to higher orbit and
make it faster/slower accordingly?

What is the difference between geostationary and

geosynchronous orbits?

Geostationary satellites orbit 35,786 km above the

Related Questions Earth’s surface. Earth’s radius is roughly 6,371 km.
If the earth was the size of a basketb...
Why the geostationary orbit is at 35,786 km when it's possible to take the satellite to higher
Why doesn't geostationary orbit depend on the
orbit and make it faster/slower accordingly?
speed of the satellite?
What is the difference between geostationary and geosynchronous orbits?
Why do geostationary satellites orbit the equator?
Geostationary satellites orbit 35,786 km above the Earth’s surface. Earth’s radius is roughly
6,371 km. If the earth was the size of a basketb... What is special about a geostationary orbit?

Why doesn't geostationary orbit depend on the speed of the satellite? Can a natural satellite exist in a geostationary
orbit?
Why do geostationary satellites orbit the equator?
How big is the Earth when viewed from a
What is special about a geostationary orbit?
geostationary orbit?
Can a natural satellite exist in a geostationary orbit?
What is the distance of a geostationary orbit from
How big is the Earth when viewed from a geostationary orbit? Earth?

What is the distance of a geostationary orbit from Earth? Why is SpaceX sending a satellite 80,000 km from
Why is SpaceX sending a satellite 80,000 km from Earth when the geostationary orbit is Earth when the geostationary orbit is 36,000 km?
36,000 km?

How was the geostationary orbit established?

What are geostationary satellites? What is the kind of orbit?

Why is a geostationary satellite kept at the height of 36,000?

How do satellites orbit in space? What is meant by a geostationary orbit?

What is geostationary orbit?

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