Dynamically replacing an objects __class__; is it safe?

[Chris Angelico]

On Fri, Mar 17, 2017 at 1:52 PM, Ian Kelly <ian.g.kelly at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Thu, Mar 16, 2017 at 7:56 PM, Dennis Lee Bieber
> <wlfraed at ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>> On Fri, 17 Mar 2017 10:03:04 +1300, Gregory Ewing
>> <greg.ewing at canterbury.ac.nz> declaimed the following:
>>
>>>Chris Angelico wrote:
>>>> I just asked my father, and he believes that a satellite DOES fly, on
>>>> the basis that it is perpetually falling and forever missing the
>>>> ground.
>>>
>>>Also, NASA people talk about "flying" the ISS, so it seems your
>>>father is in good company.
>>
>>         Most likely they are referring to using gyroscopes (reaction wheels),
>> and maneuvering thrusters to maintain orientation relative to the sun, so
>> the solar panels stay fully lit.
>
> The ISS orbit is low enough that they also have to do regular
> (approximately monthly) boosts to counteract the gradual decay.

Maybe what the ISS does isn't flying - it's falling with style?

ChrisA