What is the difference between satellites and space probes

That seems far, but the sun is 93,, miles away! The furthest unmanned spaceships are the Pioneer and Voyager probes that visited Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus. They have crossed our entire solar system! That's 40 times the distance between Earth and the sun, or 4,,, miles! Satellites are usually several hundred miles up. At that distance they are too small for you to see any detail. You can see them when the sun's light reflects off the metal surfaces of the satellite.

The best time to look is in the evening after the sun has set and the sky has gotten fairly dark. How many satellites are in space? What happened to the ones that left our solar system? I'm not sure but I would guess hundreds. The ones in low earth orbit only a few hundred miles up will eventually be dragged into earth's atmosphere and burn up.

The ones higher up will remain there for a long time. The spacecraft that were sent out to the outer solar system, like Voyager 1 and 2, are still going. They haven't left the solar system quite yet, but when they do they will just keep going. There is not much out there between the stars. It will be cold and dark, and their power will run out.

But we put a plaque on each spacecraft, with symbols and pictures. So if someone out there finds the spacecraft, they will have a map to come find us although the chances are very, very small that anyone will find them, so don't expect visitors anytime soon. How do spaceships and satellites avoid being hit by meteors? Can meteors be detected by these crafts?

Fortunately most of the stuff in space is really, really small — like dust. These little specks of rock hit spaceships and satellites all the time. On very rare occasions a meteor the size of a grain of sand hits. There isn't much we can do to avoid them, just build the spacecraft to withstand the impact!

The satellite I have been working with once got hit by a tiny meteor. We were taking measurements of a star when suddenly it moved as if someone had smacked it in the side of the head! Active 1 year, 8 months ago. Viewed 5k times. Improve this question. Glorfindel 1 1 gold badge 6 6 silver badges 21 21 bronze badges. Paran Bharali Paran Bharali 8 8 silver badges 14 14 bronze badges.

Proximity to the sun is a big factor for lots of design considerations, as do the instruments needed to perform the mission. Add a comment. Active Oldest Votes. Jupiter orbit needs radiation shielding infrared telescopes have to be cooled, so they have to use materials that work well at low temperatures Because a spacecraft can't generally be repaired after launch, there is a tendency to be conservative.

Improve this answer. Basil Bourque 5 5 silver badges 11 11 bronze badges. Hobbes Hobbes k 4 4 gold badges silver badges bronze badges. Could you elaborate more on why you think weight is incorrect? The Overflow Blog. Podcast Explaining the semiconductor shortage, and how it might end.

Does ES6 make JavaScript frameworks obsolete? Students watch a video about space probes and discuss the function of space probes. They use a photo gallery to compare and contrast different structures and equipment of probes, and make connections between the different structures and purposes of space probes. Then students use an interactive diagram of the Cassini space probe to imagine what instruments they might include on a probe of their own design.

Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. Skip to content. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Background Info Questions. What are the three types of space probes? The three types of space probes are interplanetary probes, orbiters, and landers. What does each type of space probe do? What are some examples of each type of space probe? What are two examples of data that space probes gather?

How do scientists access the gathered data? Transmission antennae on the space probes send this data to Earth.

Media Credits The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. Media If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer. Text Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Interactives Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website.

Related Resources. Solar System. View Collection. Hubble Space Telescope.