Orbital Period Of Geosynchronous Satellite

The orbital period of a geosynchronous satellite is a sidereal day i e 23 hours 56 minutes and 4 seconds which is why it seems to stay in place over a single longitude although it may drift south north depending upon the orbit s inclination with earth s equatorial plane.

Orbital period of geosynchronous satellite. At geosynchronous orbit however the orbital period of the satellite matches the orbit of the earth roughly 24 hours and the satellite appears virtually still over one spot. Such a satellite returns to the same position in the sky after each sidereal day and over the course of a day trace. Orbit of a satellite calculator high accuracy calculation welcome guest. The higher a satellite s orbit the slower it moves.

A geosynchronous satellite is a satellite in geosynchronous orbit with an orbital period the same as the earth s rotation period such a satellite returns to the same position in the sky after each sidereal day and over the course of a day traces out a path in the sky that is typically some form of analemma a special case of geosynchronous satellite is the geostationary satellite which has a. Animation not to scale showing geosynchronous satellite orbiting the earth. The period of a satellite is the time it takes. A geosynchronous satellite is a satellite in geosynchronous orbit with an orbital period the same as the earth s rotation period.

It stays at the. Certain orbital altitudes have special properties like a geosynchronous orbit in which a satellite travels around the earth exactly once each day. Because the radius and period are related you can use physics to calculate one if you know the other. A geosynchronous orbit sometimes abbreviated gso is an earth centered orbit with an orbital period that matches earth s rotation on its axis 23 hours 56 minutes and 4 seconds one sidereal day the synchronization of rotation and orbital period means that for an observer on earth s surface an object in geosynchronous orbit returns to exactly the same position in the sky after a period.

When a satellite travels in a geosynchronous orbit around the earth it needs to travel at a certain orbiting radius and period to maintain this orbit. This means that a geosynchronous satellite follows earth s movement. For a person standing on the ground a geosynchronous satellite will be viewable in the same region of the sky throughout the day. The length of each red arrow in this diagram represents the distance traveled by a satellite in an hour.

Calculates the orbital radius and period and flight velocity from the orbital altitude.