Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Thin air still reaches the space station and drags it down each day. The figure is taken from NASA Science, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a space fact?

Yes. It sits on the Space shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

Satellites in low orbit slowly sink

Thin air still reaches the space station and drags it down each day Below about 600 kilometres a trace atmosphere of gas still produces drag. The International Space Station loses roughly 100 metres of altitude a day and is periodically pushed back up by visiting spacecraft. Satellites at that height deorbit within years of running out of fuel, which limits how long old hardware lingers. It sits in Mondo's space collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

NASA Science

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Space & Astronomy trivia

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Tags: drag, orbits, satellites

Satellites in low orbit slowly sink: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Thin air still reaches the space station and drags it down each day. The figure is taken from NASA Science, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a space fact?: Yes. It sits on the Space shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.