Why orbit is basically falling sideways at 17,500 mph

A closer look

Defeating gravity requires a terrifying amount of brute force. To keep the Space Shuttle from simply plummeting back down to Earth like a multimillion-dollar brick, it had to hit 'orbital velocity.' By traveling at roughly 17,500 miles per hour, the spacecraft was technically always falling toward Earth, but moving sideways so fast that the curvature of the planet dropped away underneath it. It is literally just falling with incredible style.