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

Question

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

In: 5

Answer 1

If it never speeds up to those extreme speeds, it will fall right back down once it gets to space.

If you want to use your engines to slow you down instead of dumping that energy into the atmosphere, you have to build a rocket about 20 times bigger than the one you have to carry the rocket you have into orbit with the fuel tanks still full.