A Skyhook is simply a rotating satellite with a very long tether on one-side and a smaller tether with a counterweight on-the-other. ... Then when the tether-end has rotated to the point where it is facing away from the Earth its velocity is in the same direction as the orbit.

How do sky hooks work?

A skyhook is a proposed momentum exchange tether that aims to reduce the cost of placing payloads into low Earth orbit. ... Payloads, which are much lighter than the station, are hooked to the end of the cable as it passes, and are then flung into orbit by rotation of the cable around the center of mass.

What are Skyhooks used for?

A skyhook is a "hook" used to lift an object on a long cable hanging from the sky, without readily apparent support. In the mid-20th century it was common in the Boy Scouts and occupations such as oil drilling to send new recruits on a futile search for such an imaginary object, as a practical joke.