4 ms·
The moon’s orbit is taking it further from Earth over time, it it’s very far away and very massive, as well as being influenced by the Sun. A satellite’s mass
by scottie_m 7y ago
The moon’s orbit is taking it further from Earth over time, it it’s very far away and very massive, as well as being influenced by the Sun. A satellite’s mass is almost negligible, and compared to the Earth-Moon distance it’s distance from Earth is too. A pebble hitting the moon also isn’t going to do much to change its course, while the same pebble will do a lot more to a satellite. The same is true of dust.