Astronomy question….Please help!? 20 points!?

In a synchronous orbit, a satellite will:

1.)eventually cover the surface of the earth
2.)stay in a fixed point in space
3.)remain over a particular point on the surface of the earth
4.)over fly specific latitudes north and south of the equator

✅ Answers

? Best Answer

  • A synchronous orbit is an orbit in which an orbiting body (usually a satellite) has a period equal to the average rotational period of the body being orbited (usually a planet), and in the same direction of rotation as that body. A satellite in a synchronous orbit that is both equatorial and circular will appear to be suspended motionless above a point on the orbited planet’s equator. For synchronous satellites orbiting Earth, this is also known as a geostationary orbit. However, a synchronous orbit need not be equatorial; nor circular. A body in a non-equatorial synchronous orbit will appear to oscillate north + south above a point on the planet’s equator, while a body in an elliptical orbit will appear to oscillate eastward and westward. As seen from the orbited body the combination of these two motions produces a figure-8 pattern called an analemma.
  • A synchronous orbit is an orbit in which an orbiting body (usually a satellite) has a period equal to the average rotational period of the body being orbited (usually a planet), and in the same direction of rotation as that body.

  • 3. Remain over a particular point on the surface of the earth.

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