Earth speed

[_Simon_]

<p>Does anyone know at what speed the earth circles the sun? And also, is it slowing down?</p><p>Thanks all. I love reading all the interesting posts on this forum! <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-smile.gif" border="0" alt="Smile" title="Smile" /> </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[derekmcd]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Does anyone know at what speed the earth circles the sun? And also, is it slowing down?Thanks all. I love reading all the interesting posts on this forum! <br /> Posted by _Simon_</DIV></p><p>IIRC, it's about 100,000 km per hour.&nbsp; And, yes... due to tidal interactions with the sun, the Earth's orbit is receding.&nbsp; The recession insignificantly slow, though.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div> </div><br /><div><span style="color:#0000ff" class="Apple-style-span">"If something's hard to do, then it's not worth doing." - Homer Simpson</span></div> </div>

 

[_Simon_]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>IIRC, it's about 100,000 km per hour.&nbsp; And, yes... due to tidal interactions with the sun, the Earth's orbit is receding.&nbsp; The recession insignificantly slow, though. <br /> Posted by derekmcd</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;Oh I see. And as of 2008, how fast can we make our spacecrafts travel? I am asking since I am trying to understand how scientists are thinking when it comes to spacetravel. For examlpe, if we would travel to Mars and back, would it be best to adjust our travels to when the planets are moving towars us?&nbsp;</p><p>I hope I am getting through to you, I am having a hard time trying to explain myself. It could be because its 04.55 in the morning here =) </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[derekmcd]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>&nbsp;Oh I see. And as of 2008, how fast can we make our spacecrafts travel? I am asking since I am trying to understand how scientists are thinking when it comes to spacetravel. For examlpe, if we would travel to Mars and back, would it be best to adjust our travels to when the planets are moving towars us?&nbsp;I hope I am getting through to you, I am having a hard time trying to explain myself. It could be because its 04.55 in the morning here =) <br /> Posted by _Simon_</DIV></p><p>Here's a few spacecraft speed records:</p><p>http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/spacecraft/q0260.shtml</p><p>Here's the Pheonix Lander Trajectory.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><img src="http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/images/gallery/lg_161.jpg" alt="http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/images/gallery/lg_161.jpg" /> </p><p>As for explaining why NASA uses the trajectories they do, I'll step aside and let someone more familiar dive into that question.&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div> </div><br /><div><span style="color:#0000ff" class="Apple-style-span">"If something's hard to do, then it's not worth doing." - Homer Simpson</span></div> </div>

 

[centsworth_II]

<font color="#333399"><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'> ...would it be best to adjust our travels to when the planets are moving towars us?<br /> Posted by _Simon_</DIV></font><br />I'm not an expert, but if you mean going at them head on,&nbsp; you would end up like a bug splat on a car windshield.&nbsp; The amount of extra fuel you would have to carry to slow down to avoid this would be impractical. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[lookatit]

<p>Unfortunately, for most, space travel is not like jumping about on your bed.&nbsp; You don't have to accel-decel-lerate by going through expenditure.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Entering Orbit, Star Trek term there, just requires one to enter into the attract field generated by a body mass.&nbsp; Only, not too much.&nbsp; This is where there seems to be a problem here.&nbsp; Unless you're, of course, wanting to bloweded something up.&nbsp; Most, will hover and cut all power when there's a gravitational influence detected by the craft.</p><p>There Earth's speed is of course mandated by all influential bodies.&nbsp; Mainly observable, the sun.&nbsp; Which in turn interacts mainly detectable with nearby stars.&nbsp; Which in turn, interact with one another.&nbsp; I think the +/- value is around general mean of 50X10^3 km/h.</p><p>&nbsp;</p>

 

[MeteorWayne]

Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Unfortunately, for most, space travel is not like jumping about on your bed.&nbsp; You don't have to accel-decel-lerate by going through expenditure.&nbsp;Entering Orbit, Star Trek term there, just requires one to enter into the attract field generated by a body mass.&nbsp; Only, not too much.&nbsp; This is where there seems to be a problem here.&nbsp; Posted by lookatit</DIV><br /><br />That always cracked me up about Star Trek. Whenever the Enterprise lost power they would spiral in to crash on the planet. This created many dramatic moments, but is total hooey. If you are in a real orbit (especially as high as a "standard orbit". you need not supply any power to stay there. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>