A prominent politician recently proposed, as part of our SDI, to place a defensive satellite in geosynchronous orbit directly above Washington, D.C.
What if anything is wrong with his suggestion?
A geosynchronous orbit is when an object, including satellite, is positioned above the earth above the equator where it orbits the earth every 24 hours, so the satellite dishes do not need to rotate.
However, Washington DC is not above the equator. Therefore, there cannot exist any satellite that is directly above it in geosynchronous orbit. In reality, a satellite placed in that fashion will oscillate between both sides of the equator.
In particular, if a satellite is placed on an elliptic orbit - then it may spend more time in the northern or southern hemisphere.
Edited on September 5, 2022, 3:20 am
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