Mistake Master
Mistake Master · AP Physics 1 · Unit 6 · Step-Through Animation
Orbits: Falling Forever, Missing Forever
You'll learnwhy a satellite orbits — an inward pull bending a sideways velocity.
A satellite has no engine and never comes down. One inward pull, one sideways habit, and an energy ledger that lives below zero — the last stop for Unit 1’s cannonball.
ORBIT LAB
Before you start
What you're looking at
A satellite coasting on a circular path around a planet, carrying two arrows: velocity and gravity.
The question
With no engine and nothing holding it up, why does the satellite never fall down?
Watch for
The red gravity arrow always aiming at the center while the blue velocity stays tangent.
What the symbols mean
Blue arrow = velocity, tangent to the path; red arrow = gravitational force, aimed at the planet's center.
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