Why can’t the space shuttle just go slow enough to not be heated up by friction with earths atmosphere on re-entry?

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Why can’t the space shuttle just go slow enough to not be heated up by friction with earths atmosphere on re-entry?

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Anonymous 0 Comments

Going slower drops you into a lower orbit. Going faster pushes you into a higher orbit.

by slowing down it has to go into a lower orbit, which drops it lower into the atmosphere, which introduces friction/compression heat issues, which further slows it down, repeat

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