167. The thermosphere is too hot for satellites to survive in orbit there
"Satellites are allegedly floating around in the thermosphere where temperatures are claimed to be upwards of 4,530 degrees Fahrenheit. The metals used in satellites, however, such as aluminum, gold and titanium have melting points of 1,221, 1,948, and 3,034 degrees respectively, all far lower than they could possibly handle." Does not understand how temperature in a gas works (To be fair neither did I until I looked it up) Temperature of a gas is defined as “The temperature of a gas is a measure of the average translational kinetic energy of the molecules.” The thing to understand about the thermosphere is that the atmosphere is very very thin. I.e. There are very few molecules. So even though the air molecules have a high temperature (i.e. each molecule has a lot of energy) the overall energy in a given volume is relatively low. Think of it this way ... If you heat up a frying pan filled with oil and the hot oil spits so that a drop lands...