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A comment on Virgin Galactic successfully reaches space. Parent comment

Re:Virgin Galactic successfully reaches space by jefftk on Thursday December 13, 2018 @08:20PM (#18677644)
> It’s worth noting that if you shoot a cannonball dead horizontally, it hits the ground at the same time as it would if dropped from the same height

I think this is assuming the ground is flat, which isn't a good assumption when talking about orbits.

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Re:Virgin Galactic successfully reaches space by oliveshell on Thursday December 13, 2018 @09:08PM (#18677846)
It’s a perfectly fine assumption when talking about cannons, which are typically earthbound and have low projectile speeds.

I discuss orbits in the next paragraph, where I hope it’s evident I don’t assume a flat plane :)

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