Geostationary satellites remain directly above a single location on the Earths equator. This implies they orbit at the same rate that the Earth rotates. Let the angular speed of the earth about an axis through its poles be Ω. If their orbit can be approximated as circular, how high above the Earth’s center are these satellites?
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Step 1
Step 1: The centripetal force of the satellite is given by \(m\Omega^2r\), where \(m\) is the mass of the satellite, \(\Omega\) is the angular speed of the Earth, and \(r\) is the radius of the satellite's orbit. Show more…
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