Press space! Based on my orbital mechanics simulator, this interactive project is a visual representation of Newton's Orbital Cannon. The idea is that if you could launch a cannonball straight forward with enough velocity, it would perpetually avoid crashing into the Earth (ignoring air resistance) because as gravity pulled it in, it would travel far forward enough that if left to its own devices it would fly away from the planet, causing gravity to have to pull it back in some more to keep it from escaping, and so on and so forth--this is a very crude definition of orbiting :)
Enjoy! (An initial velocity of 91 appears to produce the most satisfyingly circular orbit)
