I have followed the space program from the start and workrd in the aerospace field and nobody has intellegently explained why spacecraft are required to re-enter the atmosphere at 17,000 mph when it seems to me that they could simply slow the vehicle down and 'fly ' it to it's landing site. I understand the extreme velosity needed to escape earths gravity but I just can't get my head around why coming back needs to be as suicidal as it is.This may sound really simpleminded,but the atmosphere is just air,and in the upper atmosphere it's thin air at that!In the early days of the space race NASA flew the X-Planes out of the stratosphere and back at speeds that were nowhere near the speeds used today. Please, I'm not stupid,help me to understand why we have to risk astronauts lives when it seems we could do the same job a lot safer.
2006-12-24
01:27:14
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8 answers
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asked by
rick m
3
in
Astronomy & Space