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

No-one mentioned it, so I will. The space shuttle is *not*, I repeat, *not* heated up to any significant degree by friction. This is a widely held misconception.

The heating is from the *compression* of the air in front of it.

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