Start here · Essential guide
How Satellites Work and Why They Matter on Earth
A plain-language guide to how satellites stay in orbit, the main orbit types, and the communication, navigation, observation and science services they provide.
Connected World
The hardware above us that enables communication, navigation and science.
Start here · Essential guide
A plain-language guide to how satellites stay in orbit, the main orbit types, and the communication, navigation, observation and science services they provide.
How imaging satellites collect optical, infrared and radar data, and how that information supports weather forecasting, land monitoring and disaster response.
How satellite navigation works: satellites broadcast precise time signals, and a receiver uses the delays from several of them to calculate where it is.
A cautious look at the case for mining asteroids and the Moon: what resources exist, what the obstacles are, and why the economics remain unproven.
Why rocket stages that land and fly again are seen as a way to cut launch costs, how they work, and what limits the savings.
How satellite internet works, why geostationary and low-orbit constellations differ in delay and coverage, and what limits speed, cost and capacity.
What space debris is, why even tiny fragments are dangerous at orbital speed, how objects are tracked, and what is being done to limit the clutter.
Why astronomers launch telescopes above the atmosphere, what that makes visible, and the trade-offs in cost, size and repair compared with ground observatories.
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