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GEO satellites

 

These satellites are in orbit above the Earth's equator. At the special height of 35,900 km they take 24 hours to orbit the Earth. Since that's how long the Earth itself takes to rotate, these satellites appear to hover above the same place on Earth.

 

Did you know? In July 1962, TELSTAR provided Europe with the first live TV pictures from the USA. By 1985, there were lots of TV satellites. The pop concert Live Aid, organised by Bob Geldof, was seen by over 2 billion people.
Image of the Live Aid logo
 

Why is this form of orbit useful? If you watch satellite television the signal you receive at home is beamed from a geostationary satellite. Since the satellite stays in the same position compared to the Earth's surface, you don't need to keep moving your satellite dish to track it. That's very useful. Geostationary satellites are also ideal for telecommunications.

 
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