Satellites

How does a television signal get to the other side of

the world in seconds? What tells ships exactly where
they are in the middle of the ocean? How do we get
warning that storms are coming? Satellites do all
these things and more.

WHAT ARE SATELLITES?

Satellites are objects in outer space that fly around
planets in circular paths called orbits. Artificial satellites
are made by people. Thousands of satellites are zooming
around our planet right now.

The Soviet Union launched the first artificial satellite,

Sputnik 1, in 1957. Sputnik 1 broadcasted a steady signal
of beeps. It circled Earth for three months and then fell
back into the atmosphere and burned up. The atmosphere
is the air that surrounds Earth.

HOW DO SATELLITES GET INTO SPACE?

Satellites need to reach a height of at least 120 miles (200
kilometers) to orbit. They also need to travel faster than
18,000 miles per hour (29,000 kilometers per hour). A
satellite any lower or slower would soon fall back down to
Earth. It takes a rocket to bring satellites up to that height
and speed.

Most satellites are launched from the ground. Some small

satellites can be launched from high-flying planes. This
uses less fuel.

Other satellites are launched using a space shuttle or

other piloted rocket. This way, astronauts on the space
shuttle can make sure the satellite is working and gets
into the right orbit.

WHAT ARE SATELLITES USED FOR?

Satellites are used for a great many things.
Communications satellites beam TV, radio, and telephone
signals all around the world. Navigational satellites help
people know where they are and get where they are
going. Weather satellites take pictures of clouds and
storms from above to help make weather forecasts. Spy
satellites look down and snoop on other countries. Other
satellites help scientists to study Earth and other planets.

HOW DO SATELLITES WORK IN SPACE?

Space is a difficult place to be. You can’t plug in a cord in
outer space, so satellites need to take a power source with
them. It’s hard to get satellites pointed in the right
direction because there’s nothing to turn them with.
Satellites need to work in the freezing cold of Earth’s
shadow as well as in the blazing heat of the Sun’s rays.
They also need to be tough enough to survive collisions
with tiny asteroids (space rocks)!

Most satellites use both power from the Sun and batteries
to work. They catch the Sun’s energy using large flat solar
panels. Satellites keep these panels pointed at the Sun.
They use batteries when the Sun doesn’t shine on them.

Satellites can stay pointed in the right direction using

small rockets called attitude thrusters. They can also use
instruments called gyroscopes. Sometimes magnets on
board the satellite can push against the magnetic field of
Earth to aim the satellite correctly.
No air flows past satellites to cool them. To keep from
getting too hot in the Sun, satellites have panels that open
and close. This lets heat escape. Satellites often spin so
the Sun doesn’t make one side so hot that it melts.

Satellites also need to be made from strong materials in

case tiny asteroids hit them. They need materials that
don’t become brittle in the cold and the harsh radiation of
space.

DO WE GET SATELLITES BACK FROM SPACE?

When satellites stop working they are often left in orbit as
so much space junk. Others drift too low to keep orbiting
and burn up as they fall. Still others are brought back to
Earth for repairs.

Nonworking satellites are sometimes sent down from orbit

into the atmosphere to burn up on purpose. Space is very
large, but still scientists need to be careful that satellites
don’t crash into each other. They try to get rid of the
broken ones.

HOW MANY SATELLITES ARE THERE?

Since Sputnik 1, more than 5,000 satellites from many
countries have been launched. Artificial satellites now orbit
the Sun, Mars, Venus, and other planets and their moons.
Most satellites, however, orbit Earth. High above your
head thousands of satellites circle the planet every day.
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