freefall from space?

Question

if you had a platform that was being held stable 100 miles up by a satilite in gyo sync with the earth way above the platform could you do a freefall to earth using a drouge chute to slow you down until you reached atmosphere to deploy your main, would you burn up or would you survive, keep in mind the platform is stable and not not moving

Answer 1

Doubtful. There are major technical problems.

The reason is that there is essentially no atmosphere to slow your fall until you're somewhere about 60 miles up or so. That means you'd spend the first 40 mile falling and accelerating. As you hit the top of the atmosphere, you would be already moving at several thousand miles per hour. That means you would be generating a LOT of heat. Unless you have some means of dissipating that heat, you'd cook.

It would be somewhat easier if you started lower. The edge of space is conventionally placed at 100 km, or 62 miles. SpaceShipOne got that high. But again the problem is that even there, your terminal velocity would build up so rapidly that you would be going way too fast as you dropped lower, and again you'd need some way to dissipate the heat.

Answer 2

The platform is moving at the same speed as the earth and atmosphere below it (plus or minus winds aloft). Of course, orbital mechanics means it would be very difficult to keep the platform stable -- it would want to speed eastwards. The cable back to the geosync better be VERY strong, and the geosync VERY massive.

As for dropping with a drogue chute: no way man! You're going to get up to 1000 mph in the first 10 miles or so of drop, and 2000 mph in the first 30 miles, before there is enough air slow you down much. But there is enough air to heat up from ram pressure and friction. You need a solid heat shield, until the air is thick enough to slow you down to a few 100 mph.

Answer 3

You would accelerate for a long time before you reached atmosphere thick enough to begin slowing you down. For example, you can probably neglect atmospheric drag the first 25 miles of free-fall, after which you're going about 2000 mph. I'd guess you'd continue to accelerate for quite a bit more before any kind of parachute would be effective - shuttle flight surfaces aren't usable above about 55 miles. I don't know that you'd be going fast enough to burn up, but your Mach number is going to be way too high for anything resembling a conventional parachute.

Answer 4

There is no atmosphere 100 miles up, no chute would be of any use and you would be dead before you reached Earth's atmosphere. What difference does it make whether the platfown is stable or not?

Answer 5

The platform is moving, since it needs to maintain a fixed velocity in order to remain in stable orbit. Nothing in orbit is stationary, except relative to the earth's surface at geostationary orbit (~23,000 miles). Even if it's attached to that satellite, it's still moving. You would have to shed the momentum imparted to you by the platform (7.77 km/sec, if I'm not mistaken) somehow, either with retros or using the atmosphere as a brake. That would lead to significant heating.

Answer 6

It's been done from 20 miles up. From 100 miles up you'd be going pretty fast, and I doubt an unprotected human would survive. If you had a heat shield and the right sort of parachute system, you'd be fine.

Answer 7

"a drouge chute to slow you down until you reached atmosphere"

How would a chute do anything in the vacuum of space?

Answer 8

in case you have been to proceed to exist the autumn going for the period of the ambience then: a million. Your hair would desire to nevertheless be on your scalp. 2. No way you may attain the backside. thank you to deep. you may nevertheless be deep adequate the place you may not attain the precise till now understanding of breath, for this reason, you may sink. 3. Your physique would desire to nevertheless be recognizable. 4. you may proceed to exist the effect in spite of the shown fact that it would injury like crap and you've gotten many injuries. 5. in case you probably did a abdomen flop, there may be no supply interior the water so it may be like abdomen flopping directly to concrete. Your physique may be each the place. Guts flown in all places. 6. Your wiener might stay related. it particularly is on there extraordinarily solid. This all relies on the dive you advised me as properly 6.

Answer 9

You could probably do it, but you would need some kind of heat shield, because there would be heating, although not nearly as much as returning from orbit.