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Orbits and satellites
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What an orbit is

What an orbit is

Satellite in circular orbit around Earth with Earth's centre marked, orbital radius r from centre to satellite, altitude h from surface to satellite, tangential velocity v, and gravitational force F_g toward the centre A satellite is an object that moves around a larger body because of gravity, and it can be natural like the Moon or artificial like GPS satellites. In this lesson we model the path as a circular orbit, so the satellite stays a constant distance from the planet's centre.

Orbits and satellites Lesson

  1. A Level
  2. /Physics
  3. /Orbits and satellites

Step-by-step lessons on Edexcel A Level Physics Orbits and satellites. Each one builds up to exam-style questions. Physics is one of the most mathematically demanding A Levels -- at least 40% of the marks across the three papers require maths skills at Level 2 (GCSE) standard or above, so build calculation and graph-handling fluency alongside the conceptual content from the start.

Lessons