OK,I’m stupid. You have me pegged. I’m SO sorry I asked.
I guess I should’ve used my little old pea brain. }:-(
The satellite needs to reach about 17,000 miles an hour to reach orbit and be pointed in the right direction. My Dad designed Vanguard 1, the fourth satellite in orbit and the oldest one still there. The first six seconds of the video shows me and my brother and three sisters arranged around the Vanguard 1 a week or two before its launch (I’m wearing the red coat).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msLSW1U1t1U
I don’t know whether you’re stupid or not, but think of it as a teachable moment...
Are you a young person? If so, as I said, consider it a teachable moment.
A “science geek” isn’t someone who asks questions like this — it’s someone who is asked questions like this. Think about it.
We’re happy to help, but no one wants to spoon feed someone else — we have better things to do with our time. It’s a big Internet out there — go do so research, read what you find, then come back with questions that web searches don’t answer, and we’ll try to help.