5 ms·
> If the astronaut jumps directly to the direction of the orbit normal at any velocity, it will end up in an orbit with equal period That's obviously false for
by svantana 5y ago
> If the astronaut jumps directly to the direction of the orbit normal at any velocity, it will end up in an orbit with equal period
That's obviously false for e.g. escape velocity, and by continuity also wrong for lower velocities.
- exDM69 5y agoYes, this is a small impulse approximation, which assumes that astronaut jump velocity is small compared to orbital velocity. Practical matters (mass) prevents instantaneous impulse to escape velocity in practice.
- svantana 5y agoRight, but in this case even a minimal deviation from period will be catastrophic. I do however like the idea of jumping "up" (north) while facing the earth and landing in the same spot 45 min later.