In light of the recent launches I was wondering why rockets launch straight up instead of taking of like a plane.
It seems to take so much fuel to go straight up, and in my mind I can’t see to get my head around why they don’t take off like a plane and go up gradually like that.
Edit – Spelling and grammar
Edit 2 – Thank you to everyone who responded. You have answered a life long question.
In: Physics
Dont think top answer is right. Planes have wings to get lift. Wings only work where there is enough air, that is, within 50,000ft of the surface. A rocket gets to that altitude in minutes (or less). After that, the wings would be excess mass that require more fuel to get into orbit.
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