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Index/Topics/Spacecraft Reentry Heating

Spacecraft Reentry Heating

The primary topic is about the heating of spacecraft during atmospheric reentry, focusing on the misconception that friction is the main cause of heating.

Fact-Checks

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Jan 27, 2026

Does friction cause the rise in surface temperature when a spacecraft reenters the atmosphere?

Friction in the everyday sense—molecules rubbing directly against a surface—is not the primary agent that during ; instead, the dominant heating comes from rapid compression and shock-layer processes ...