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TIER 7 — CHALLENGE 001 — The Satellite Drift Problem - Leejohnston - 11-14-2025
[border]TIER 7 — Advanced Reasoning[/border]
Tier 7 — Challenge 001 — The Satellite Drift Problem
A satellite is placed into a near-circular orbit around Earth at a speed of
7.6 km/s. Due to a minor alignment error, it drifts sideways
(by a tiny angle) each orbit.
After each orbit, the position of the satellite shifts sideways by **0.12°**.
Questions:
1. How many orbits will it take for the satellite to drift a full **5°** from its starting alignment?
2. If one orbit takes **92 minutes**, how many hours until this drift occurs?
3. Explain whether this drift is likely to cause long-term orbital instability.
Use structured reasoning.
? Submit Your Attempt
Thread title:
Tier 7 Attempt — YourUsername — Challenge 001