<p>As altitude increases the air gets thinner, that is, atmospheric density decreases. The nominal boundary to space as the von Kármán ellipsoid, a curve, above the surface of the Earth at 100km altitude. A spacecraft is a vehicle or vessel designed to operate beyond the von Kármán ellipsoid. The only thing we all agree on is that space is up.</p>

As altitude increases the air gets thinner, that is, atmospheric density decreases. The nominal boundary to space as the von Kármán ellipsoid, a curve, above the surface of the Earth at 100km altitude. A spacecraft is a vehicle or vessel designed to operate beyond the von Kármán ellipsoid. The only thing we all agree on is that space is up.

0001: Where is space, & what’s a spacecraft?

Nibbles in Space is a series of short podcasts from SpaceProf, making space more accessible. A nibble is half a byte. A nibble is 4 bits of information, whether you listen to it as a podcast or if want a little more of a Nibble you can read it at SpaceProf.xyz/Nibbles. SpaceProf is Prof. Malcolm Macdonald, Chair of Applied Space Technology at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland.

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0001: Where is space, & what’s a spacecraft?

0001: Where is space, & what’s a spacecraft?