Is it really possible for a spaceship to stand still and turn off all engines and just be idle in one exact spot in space like it happens in particular famous tv series etc? Wouldn’t the ship just continue floating away/moving on its own until you turn the engines back on?
In: 6
With the proviso that “one exact spot” is always going to be relative to something else, sure.
This is, mostly, how things dock with the space station. A capsule gets launched, flies up near the space station, and then uses its thrusters to come to a “full stop” right next to it. Then one of the space station’s arms grabs the capsule and pulls it in so it can dock.
It doesn’t float away / move on its own (or at least not very much) because they’re *REALLY REALLY CAREFUL* about how they use the thrusters so they get it juuuuuust right. Lots of stuff in space travel involves *LOTS* of people *ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS* being *REALLY REALLY CAREFUL*.
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