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What stops the earth from going strait into the sun when gravity pulls earth toward the sun?
Wiki User
∙ 15y ago
Drop a ball and it will fall to the ground. Throw the ball at a reasonable speed and it will still hit the ground in the same time more or less. Imagine now however that you threw the ball so fast that by the time it fell as far as it normally would to hit the ground, it traveled so far that there was no ground underneath it to fall anymore. Such is the case with all celestial bodies, the Earth included. So to be technical, we are constantly "falling" into the sun, but we will never quite make it.
Wiki User
∙ 15y ago
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Why do you think a satellite doesn't get pulled to the ground by gravity?
It certainly gets pulled toward the Earth. Without the pull of gravity, the satellite would continue moving in a straight line, instead of going around the Earth in a circle or ellipse.
How inertia and gravity combine to keep earth in orbit?
gravity and inertia combine to keep earth in orbit because the suns gravity keeps the earth in orbit and the inertia keeps the earth from going in a straight line.
What keeps the air from leaving the earth and going into space?
gravity
What is the measurement of the force of gravity pulling an object toward the earth?
The strength of the gravitational forces between the Earth and an object on or near it is called the "weight" of the object. In reality, there are two equal and opposite forces going on. The Earth attracts the object toward it, with a force that is the weight of the object on Earth. At the same time, the object attracts the Earth toward it, with a force that is the weight of the Earth on the object. The forces are equal. When the object is our body, we obsess about the first one. Nobody ever talks about the second one.
How does gravity help a satellite in orbit?
If you imagine shooting a cannon at a horizontal level, you will see that the cannonball curves toward the Earth as it accelerates "downward" (i.e. toward Earth's surface.)Now imagine this on a much bigger scale; as the object moves forward, it also get pulled down toward the Earth. Since the Earth itself is curved, the cannonball would never hit the ground. If it was going fast enough, it would simply fall into orbit.For an illustration to accompany this, see:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Newton_Cannon.svg
Is it true that Gravity exists only near Earth?
No. But the closer you are to the center of mass, the greater the effect of gravity. As spacecraft get farther from Earth, its pull on them decreases. But it is still strong enough to hold the Moon in orbit. The reason for zero gravity in Earth orbit is that a spacecraft is in free fall toward the Earth, so there is no apparent gravity within the craft. There are large planes that can simulate this by going into a steep dive, so that the occupants float around in free fall inside the plane, until it levels off.
Which requires more fuel -- a rocket going from the Earth to the Moon or a rocket coming from the Moon to Earth?
the moon because it has only one sixth of the gravitational pull that Earth does
Why must there be gravity in space?
All matter posesess gravity simply by it's presence. Matter curves the grid of space and time which make up the universe. That's when as the earth revolves around the sun. It's not actually going in a circle. Its going strait... But in curved space. The suns presence curves space and therefore pulls anything with less mass towards it.
Which force makes the earth keep going round the sun?
Gravity..
What force causes the earth to orbit the sun?
the force to move the world entire 9 planets including the earth is called gravity learn science please. _____________________________________________ NOTHING "forces" the Earth to move in its orbit; it is a falling rock. The Earth falls freely STRAIGHT through space at a little over 67,000 miles per hour, and the Sun's gravity pulls the Earth in toward the Sun. Stable Orbits like this are a careful balance of inertia, which keeps the Moon going straight, and gravity, which pulls the Moon straight in. Together, they keep the Earth freely falling in an ellipse around the Sun.
The relative surface gravity on earth is?
That's going to depend on 'relative' to what ?Relative to the acceleration of gravity on Earth, it's precisely 1.000, or 100% .Relative to the acceleration of gravity on Pluto, it's 16.822, or 1,682.2 % .
Why doesnt mercury fall into the sun Many say it is due to gravity But gravity between what?
the ansewer is not gravity. Gravity is what keeps it around the sun. you see mercury has linear motion, which just means it is going strait. if the sun had no gravity mercury would simply fly past the sun and out of the solar system. Also if mercury had no linar motion it would simply fall strait into the sun. so.. it is the balance of gravity with mercury's linear motion that keeps it in orbit around the sun.
