# Question about the Space Shuttle **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 23, 2002, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577 "2002-10-23T21:01:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BZ00000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/47e85d/32.png) [@BZ00000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BZ00000)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/1 "2002-10-23T21:01:25Z")
How fast would the Space Shuttle have to reverse-orbit the Earth to turn back time like Superman did? Does NASA plan to try this in the future? When? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/2 "2002-10-23T21:30:39Z")
They already did, I think it was tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![scotth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@scotth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotth)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/3 "2002-10-23T21:58:00Z")
Please tell me this is a joke. ---
**Author:** ![BZ00000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/47e85d/32.png) [@BZ00000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BZ00000)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/4 "2002-10-23T22:07:01Z")
No, I am serious (not about NASA planning to do it, I don’t think they have the ability to do it yet) but I would really like to know how fast the Space Shuttle would have to go in reverse-orbit to casuse time to go backwards like in the Superman movie. ---
**Author:** ![BZ00000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/47e85d/32.png) [@BZ00000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BZ00000)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/5 "2002-10-23T22:08:25Z")
No, I am serious (not about NASA planning to do it, I don’t think they have the ability to do it yet) but I would really like to know how fast the Space Shuttle would have to go in reverse-orbit to cause time to go backwards like in the Superman movie. ---
**Author:** ![scotth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@scotth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotth)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/6 "2002-10-23T22:20:05Z")
Going in reverse orbit at any speed would have zero effect on the flow of time on the planet. ---
**Author:** ![Saltire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saltire/32/553_2.png) [@Saltire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saltire)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/7 "2002-10-23T22:22:28Z")
Okay, I know you’re still playing with us, but I’ll answer as if you’re serious anyway. The fact that Supes was orbiting the Earth had nothing to do with his time travel, and which direction he went was likewise meaningless. The reason he travelled in time was that he was orbiting faster than the speed of light. It would have been the same if he’d done it in a straight line, but he wanted to stay near the planet. The visual in the movie of the Earth’s rotation slowing and reversing was just the moviemaker’s way of showing that Superman’s personal time was going backwards. In real life, of course, you can’t accelerate past the speed of light. But Superman can do things that don’t happen in real life, as I’m sure you have seen. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/8 "2002-10-23T22:35:44Z")
Given that the Earth is made of chocolate, does it contain peanuts or almonds? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/9 "2002-10-23T22:40:45Z")
Oh, don’t forget about frame dragging (although I don’t think this would cause the direction of time to reverse). ---
**Author:** ![BZ00000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/47e85d/32.png) [@BZ00000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BZ00000)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/10 "2002-10-24T00:54:37Z")
Saltire Wrote: "Okay, I know you’re still playing with us, but I’ll answer as if you’re serious anyway. The fact that Supes was orbiting the Earth had nothing to do with his time travel, and which direction he went was likewise meaningless. The reason he travelled in time was that he was orbiting faster than the speed of light. It would have been the same if he’d done it in a straight line, but he wanted to stay near the planet. The visual in the movie of the Earth’s rotation slowing and reversing was just the moviemaker’s way of showing that Superman’s personal time was going backwards. In real life, of course, you can’t accelerate past the speed of light. But Superman can do things that don’t happen in real life, as I’m sure you have seen." I don’t think that a person can travel back in time, Superman clearly reversed the time of the entire world. I just want to know how he did it and if NASA can do it, I mean were do my taxes go? “The visual in the movie of the Earth’s rotation slowing and reversing was just the moviemaker’s way of showing that Superman’s personal time was going backwards.” Wrong, I can clearly hear the Earth slowing down and reversing its spin. How could the director fake that? ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/11 "2002-10-24T02:34:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BZ00000 \* > **How fast would the Space Shuttle have to reverse-orbit the Earth to turn back time like Superman did?** “… like Superman did?” Ah, Superman is a _comic book invention_. Sheeesh! Hmmm, when does your fantasy world end and your reality world begin, bub? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Race\_Bannon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Race\_Bannon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Race_Bannon)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/12 "2002-10-24T03:12:53Z")
Remember that MASH episode when Klinger was out-kooked by a guy who showed up at the hospital? How the guy said “goodnight, Mr. Shoes, goodnight Mr. Socks”? And then Klinger sort of rolled his eyes and let out a “wheeeew!” That’s how I feel after reading this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/13 "2002-10-24T03:35:54Z")
Kind of annoying that a troll like this can survive in GQ this many hours. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/14 "2002-10-24T05:40:08Z")
> [@](#): > > Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana. _ **–Groucho Marx** _ Does that explain it? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/15 "2002-10-24T08:08:55Z")
NASA is looking seriously into this Earth-reversal-timespinning thing. It will cost taxpayers approximately $800 trillion. [See my page for Top Secret details.](http://198.168.49.45/~web9/flash/Skill6-10/final/menu.swf) ---
**Author:** ![BZ00000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/47e85d/32.png) [@BZ00000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BZ00000)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/16 "2002-10-24T14:48:44Z")
I don’t appreciate everybody making fun of me, this is not the pit. I asked a serious question and would like an answer, not to be ridiculed. I truly believe time can be reversed with a reverse-orbit, if you do not please explain why, you don’t have to resort to making fun of me. There are many scientific ideas that were once thought of as crazy or stupid. I am willing to bet that if reverse-orbital time effects are perfected in our lifetime you will be the first to use this technology to erase your posts. So can we focus on the questions in the OP. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/17 "2002-10-24T15:01:11Z")
There is no possible answer to the OP. Based on our current understanding of the universe, time travel is impossible. Of course, our understanding of the universe is incomplete so there may be a loophole. But if there is, we don’t know what it is so we still can’t answer your question. By “we” I mean anyone basing their answer on the generally accepted theories of physics - mostly Special and General Theories of Relativity. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/18 "2002-10-24T15:01:49Z")
Perhaps it would help if you explained your reasoning for why (you truly believe)it _should_ work (or are you just assuming that it should until somebody can prove otherwise?). Besides, what Superman did in that movie was not an orbit as such - it would not be possible for an object to remain in a natural orbit around the Earth at that speed. ---
**Author:** ![Michael\_Ellis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/977dab/32.png) [@Michael\_Ellis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael_Ellis)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/19 "2002-10-24T15:02:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BZ00000 \* > \*\*I don’t appreciate everybody making fun of me, this is not the pit. I asked a serious question and would like an answer, not to be ridiculed. I truly believe time can be reversed with a reverse-orbit, if you do not please explain why, you don’t have to resort to making fun of me. There are many scientific ideas that were once thought of as crazy or stupid. I am willing to bet that if reverse-orbital time effects are perfected in our lifetime you will be the first to use this technology to erase your posts. > > So can we focus on the questions in the OP. \*\* [Try here.](http://www.timecube.com/) Gene Ray can help. ---
**Author:** ![scotth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@scotth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotth)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2002, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577/20 "2002-10-24T15:04:12Z")
There is absolutely no mechanism in physics that would cause time reversal of the planet by orbit at any speed in the reverse direction. Period. There is the barest hint of it being possible to travel back in time by exceeding the speed of light. However, there is no hint of a way to actually exceed the speed of light in a vacuum. The only maybe, just barely not ruled out, way to effectively beat the speed of light is to take a shortcut though space by traveling though a worm hole or something similarly exotic. The mathematics of relativity allow for this. Creating a travelable wormhole would require matter with negative mass and/or other strange properties. There is no reason to believe that creating these necessary materials will ever be possible. Time reversal orbits are pure fantasy and have no basis in reality. You heard it here first. > [@](#): > > Wrong, I can clearly hear the Earth slowing down and reversing its spin. How could the director fake that? This line, on its own, paints you as a troll or irretrievably ignorant. > [@](#): > > I truly believe time can be reversed with a reverse-orbit Please share with us even one piece of evidence that would lead you to this conclusion. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-the-space-shuttle/133577.md?page=2)