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Roche Limit, Tides and the Earth Moon System

If a satellite gets too close to its parent planet - it can be torn apart by tidal forces. See the note on the Roche limit which discusses how to estimate the limit of closest approach (Roche limit) before this effect comes into play. There are also interesting effects due to tidal forces and torques. See the note on the effect of tides - the Earth-Moon distance is increasing (3 cm/yr) and the Earth's rotation is slowing down increasing the length of the day by 2 microseconds/year.