The Neo-Babylonian Empire was a period of Mesopotamian history which began in 626 BC and ended in 539 BC. During the preceding three centuries, Babylonia had been ruled by their fellow Akkadian speakers and northern neighbours, Assyria.
In order for a satellite to successfully orbit the Earth, it must travel a horizontal distance of 8000 meters before falling a vertical distance of 5 meters. A horizontally launched projectile falls a vertical distance of 5 meters in its first second of motion.
The force of gravity is decreased, but only slightly. The satellite is 4050 miles from the center of the earth, where we are roughly 3950 miles. The force of gravity is reduced by the square of the distance, but it is still strong enough to keep the moon in orbit some 230,000 miles away.