What is the Satellite?
A satellite is an object in space that orbits or circles around a bigger object. There are two kinds of satellite
1. Natural
Such as the moon orbiting the Earth.
2. Artificial
Such as the International Space Station orbiting the Earth.
There are dozens upon natural satellites in the solar system, with almost every planet having at least one moon. Saturn, for example, has at least 53 natural satellites, and between 2004 and 2017, it also had an artificial one the Cassini spacecraft which explored the ringed planet and its moons.
Artificial satellites, however, did not become a reality until the mid 20th century. The first artificial satellite was Sputnik, a Russian beach ball size space probe that lifted off on Oct. 4,1957. That act shocked much of the western world, as it was believed the Soviets did not have the capability to send satellites into space.
Briefly history of an artificial satellite
The first artificial satellite was successfully launched by the Soviet Union on October 4th, 1957 this satellite was called Sputnik 1. Sputnik 1 weighed 183 pounds, was about the size of a cricket ball, and took 98 minutes to orbit the earth. The launch of this satellite; Sputnik 1, has been named as the start of the space age and the start of the US-USSR space race which spanned over the years of the 1960s.
The next launch was on November 3rd of that year when the Soviets's launched Sputnik 2. Sputnik 2 carried a much heavier payload. This included a dog called Laika. Immediately after Sputnik, the US Defence Department responded by funding another satellite project run by a man named Von Braun. Von Braun, his team, and the US Army arsenal at Redstone worked on what was the Explorer Project. It was not until January 31st that Explorer I was launched.
Parts of a Satellite
Every usable artificial satellite - whether its a human or robotic one - has four main parts to it: a power system (which could be solar or nuclear, for example), a way to control its attitude, an antenna to transmit and receive information, and a payload to collect information (such as a camera or particle detector).
What Stops a Satellite From Crashing into another Satellite
Space agencies have ti consider orbital trajectories carefully when launching something into space. Agencies such as the United States Space Surveillance Network keep an eye on orbital debris from the ground and alert NASA and other entities if an errant piece is in danger of hitting something vital. This means that from time to time, the ISS needs to perform evasive maneuvers to get out of the way.
Collisions still occur, however. One of the biggest culprits of space debris was the leftovers of a 2007 generator debris that destroyed a Russian Satellied in 2013. Also that year, the Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251 satellites smashed into each other, generating a cloud of debris.
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