The observation of extensive air showers from an Earth-orbiting satellite

We review the main issues that are relevant for the observation of extensive air showers from an Earth-orbiting satellite. Extensive air showers are produced by the interaction of ultra-high energy cosmic particles with the atmosphere and can be observed by an orbiting telescope detecting the air scintillation light. vide the main analytical formulas and semi-analytical results needed to optimize the design of a suitable telescope and estimate the best-expected performance and the minimal necessary requirements for the observation. we have in mind an EUSO-like general-purpose experiment, the results presented in this paper are useful for any kind of space-based experiment.