How Did the Space Junk Stay in Orbit in Wall-E?
In the Disney/Pixar film Wall-E, we see space junk practically covering Earth's atmosphere in orbit.............how? If it had been years, generations since man had been to Earth, shouldn't all of that debris eventually have fallen back to Earth? Thus Earth's atmosphere should be clear of ANYTHING? (the surface and oceans would be a royal mess, but above should be crystal clear I would think?)
Is this something I'm missing in orbital physics, or is this question better to just chalk up to the "it's a cartoon, it looked cool to Pixar" position?
See the inserted picture to see what I mean.
And a view from far away
space physics wall-e
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
add a comment |
In the Disney/Pixar film Wall-E, we see space junk practically covering Earth's atmosphere in orbit.............how? If it had been years, generations since man had been to Earth, shouldn't all of that debris eventually have fallen back to Earth? Thus Earth's atmosphere should be clear of ANYTHING? (the surface and oceans would be a royal mess, but above should be crystal clear I would think?)
Is this something I'm missing in orbital physics, or is this question better to just chalk up to the "it's a cartoon, it looked cool to Pixar" position?
See the inserted picture to see what I mean.
And a view from far away
space physics wall-e
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
Questions about real-world orbital physics are not well suited to a site about science fiction
– Valorum
1 hour ago
add a comment |
In the Disney/Pixar film Wall-E, we see space junk practically covering Earth's atmosphere in orbit.............how? If it had been years, generations since man had been to Earth, shouldn't all of that debris eventually have fallen back to Earth? Thus Earth's atmosphere should be clear of ANYTHING? (the surface and oceans would be a royal mess, but above should be crystal clear I would think?)
Is this something I'm missing in orbital physics, or is this question better to just chalk up to the "it's a cartoon, it looked cool to Pixar" position?
See the inserted picture to see what I mean.
And a view from far away
space physics wall-e
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
In the Disney/Pixar film Wall-E, we see space junk practically covering Earth's atmosphere in orbit.............how? If it had been years, generations since man had been to Earth, shouldn't all of that debris eventually have fallen back to Earth? Thus Earth's atmosphere should be clear of ANYTHING? (the surface and oceans would be a royal mess, but above should be crystal clear I would think?)
Is this something I'm missing in orbital physics, or is this question better to just chalk up to the "it's a cartoon, it looked cool to Pixar" position?
See the inserted picture to see what I mean.
And a view from far away
space physics wall-e
space physics wall-e
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
asked 4 hours ago
MissouriSpartanMissouriSpartan
43710
43710
Questions about real-world orbital physics are not well suited to a site about science fiction
– Valorum
1 hour ago
add a comment |
Questions about real-world orbital physics are not well suited to a site about science fiction
– Valorum
1 hour ago
Questions about real-world orbital physics are not well suited to a site about science fiction
– Valorum
1 hour ago
Questions about real-world orbital physics are not well suited to a site about science fiction
– Valorum
1 hour ago
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
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In low Earth orbit 2,000 km, orbital debris circle the Earth at speeds of between 7 to 8 km/s, when orbital debris collide with other orbital debris its create more orbital debris.
Eventually debris will fall to earth and will burn.
How long will orbital debris remain in Earth orbit?
The higher the altitude, the longer the orbital debris will typically remain in Earth orbit. Debris left in orbits below 600 km (370 miles) normally fall back to Earth within several years. At altitudes of 800 km (500 miles), the time for orbital decay is often measured in decades. Above 1,000 km (620 miles), orbital debris normally will continue circling Earth for a century or more. from NASA
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
1
Considering that the movie takes place approximately 700 years after Earth was abandoned, all that space junk should have de-orbited long since, unless there was a continuous supply of more material from somewhere.
– DavidW
4 hours ago
add a comment |
To expand on Oni's answer, in much higher orbits, including geostationary orbit, objects can stay in orbit for millions or billions of years. As you get farther from the Earth, the atmosphere becomes exponentially thinner, to the point that particles coming from the Sun are more common than Earth-bound air molecules.
In higher orbits particularly out towards sort of 36 000 kilometres – what we’d call a geostationary orbit – in principle, they could stay up there forever. The orbit will tend to shift over time but it will stay orbiting the Earth in the same way that the Moon still orbits the Earth after millions of years. New Zealand Government Science Learning Hub
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
add a comment |
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2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
In low Earth orbit 2,000 km, orbital debris circle the Earth at speeds of between 7 to 8 km/s, when orbital debris collide with other orbital debris its create more orbital debris.
Eventually debris will fall to earth and will burn.
How long will orbital debris remain in Earth orbit?
The higher the altitude, the longer the orbital debris will typically remain in Earth orbit. Debris left in orbits below 600 km (370 miles) normally fall back to Earth within several years. At altitudes of 800 km (500 miles), the time for orbital decay is often measured in decades. Above 1,000 km (620 miles), orbital debris normally will continue circling Earth for a century or more. from NASA
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
1
Considering that the movie takes place approximately 700 years after Earth was abandoned, all that space junk should have de-orbited long since, unless there was a continuous supply of more material from somewhere.
– DavidW
4 hours ago
add a comment |
In low Earth orbit 2,000 km, orbital debris circle the Earth at speeds of between 7 to 8 km/s, when orbital debris collide with other orbital debris its create more orbital debris.
Eventually debris will fall to earth and will burn.
How long will orbital debris remain in Earth orbit?
The higher the altitude, the longer the orbital debris will typically remain in Earth orbit. Debris left in orbits below 600 km (370 miles) normally fall back to Earth within several years. At altitudes of 800 km (500 miles), the time for orbital decay is often measured in decades. Above 1,000 km (620 miles), orbital debris normally will continue circling Earth for a century or more. from NASA
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
1
Considering that the movie takes place approximately 700 years after Earth was abandoned, all that space junk should have de-orbited long since, unless there was a continuous supply of more material from somewhere.
– DavidW
4 hours ago
add a comment |
In low Earth orbit 2,000 km, orbital debris circle the Earth at speeds of between 7 to 8 km/s, when orbital debris collide with other orbital debris its create more orbital debris.
Eventually debris will fall to earth and will burn.
How long will orbital debris remain in Earth orbit?
The higher the altitude, the longer the orbital debris will typically remain in Earth orbit. Debris left in orbits below 600 km (370 miles) normally fall back to Earth within several years. At altitudes of 800 km (500 miles), the time for orbital decay is often measured in decades. Above 1,000 km (620 miles), orbital debris normally will continue circling Earth for a century or more. from NASA
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
In low Earth orbit 2,000 km, orbital debris circle the Earth at speeds of between 7 to 8 km/s, when orbital debris collide with other orbital debris its create more orbital debris.
Eventually debris will fall to earth and will burn.
How long will orbital debris remain in Earth orbit?
The higher the altitude, the longer the orbital debris will typically remain in Earth orbit. Debris left in orbits below 600 km (370 miles) normally fall back to Earth within several years. At altitudes of 800 km (500 miles), the time for orbital decay is often measured in decades. Above 1,000 km (620 miles), orbital debris normally will continue circling Earth for a century or more. from NASA
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
edited 4 hours ago
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
answered 4 hours ago
OniOni
499216
499216
1
Considering that the movie takes place approximately 700 years after Earth was abandoned, all that space junk should have de-orbited long since, unless there was a continuous supply of more material from somewhere.
– DavidW
4 hours ago
add a comment |
1
Considering that the movie takes place approximately 700 years after Earth was abandoned, all that space junk should have de-orbited long since, unless there was a continuous supply of more material from somewhere.
– DavidW
4 hours ago
1
1
Considering that the movie takes place approximately 700 years after Earth was abandoned, all that space junk should have de-orbited long since, unless there was a continuous supply of more material from somewhere.
– DavidW
4 hours ago
Considering that the movie takes place approximately 700 years after Earth was abandoned, all that space junk should have de-orbited long since, unless there was a continuous supply of more material from somewhere.
– DavidW
4 hours ago
add a comment |
To expand on Oni's answer, in much higher orbits, including geostationary orbit, objects can stay in orbit for millions or billions of years. As you get farther from the Earth, the atmosphere becomes exponentially thinner, to the point that particles coming from the Sun are more common than Earth-bound air molecules.
In higher orbits particularly out towards sort of 36 000 kilometres – what we’d call a geostationary orbit – in principle, they could stay up there forever. The orbit will tend to shift over time but it will stay orbiting the Earth in the same way that the Moon still orbits the Earth after millions of years. New Zealand Government Science Learning Hub
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
add a comment |
To expand on Oni's answer, in much higher orbits, including geostationary orbit, objects can stay in orbit for millions or billions of years. As you get farther from the Earth, the atmosphere becomes exponentially thinner, to the point that particles coming from the Sun are more common than Earth-bound air molecules.
In higher orbits particularly out towards sort of 36 000 kilometres – what we’d call a geostationary orbit – in principle, they could stay up there forever. The orbit will tend to shift over time but it will stay orbiting the Earth in the same way that the Moon still orbits the Earth after millions of years. New Zealand Government Science Learning Hub
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
add a comment |
To expand on Oni's answer, in much higher orbits, including geostationary orbit, objects can stay in orbit for millions or billions of years. As you get farther from the Earth, the atmosphere becomes exponentially thinner, to the point that particles coming from the Sun are more common than Earth-bound air molecules.
In higher orbits particularly out towards sort of 36 000 kilometres – what we’d call a geostationary orbit – in principle, they could stay up there forever. The orbit will tend to shift over time but it will stay orbiting the Earth in the same way that the Moon still orbits the Earth after millions of years. New Zealand Government Science Learning Hub
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
To expand on Oni's answer, in much higher orbits, including geostationary orbit, objects can stay in orbit for millions or billions of years. As you get farther from the Earth, the atmosphere becomes exponentially thinner, to the point that particles coming from the Sun are more common than Earth-bound air molecules.
In higher orbits particularly out towards sort of 36 000 kilometres – what we’d call a geostationary orbit – in principle, they could stay up there forever. The orbit will tend to shift over time but it will stay orbiting the Earth in the same way that the Moon still orbits the Earth after millions of years. New Zealand Government Science Learning Hub
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
answered 12 mins ago
WaterMoleculeWaterMolecule
83115
83115
add a comment |
add a comment |
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Questions about real-world orbital physics are not well suited to a site about science fiction
– Valorum
1 hour ago