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valdar
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Quick question, do bigger planet spin faster?
valdar said:Quick question, do bigger planet spin faster?
mgb_phys said:Planet Speed at equator (km/h)
Mercury 10.9
Venus 6.5
Earth 1670
Mars 867
Jupiter 45600
Saturn 37000
Uranus 10900
Neptune 8460
Pluto 47
You would expect small planets to spin faster - from conservation of angular momentum
But larger planets were formed from larger clouds of stuff.
As stuff contracted, then because of conservation of angular momentum it speeded up, the bigger/faster the original cloud the faster it ended up. Of course if you took the existing planets and made each of them smaller - they would speed up even more.
Then there are effects that have happened since. Mercury's rotation is slowed by tidal friction with the sun so has a very slow speed (long day), the Earth's is slowed a little by friction with the moon.
Uranus probably got hit by something in the past - which is why it has a weird axis tilt.
Mars might also have been affected by whatever caused the asteroid belt.
The spin of a planet refers to its rotational motion around its own axis. This determines the length of its day and the direction of its winds and ocean currents.
The spin of a planet is measured by observing the rotation of its surface features, such as mountains and valleys, over a period of time. This can also be calculated using data from satellites and spacecraft.
Yes, the size of a planet does affect its spin. Generally, larger planets have a faster spin than smaller planets due to their greater mass and gravitational force.
Larger planets have a faster spin because their greater mass and gravitational force causes them to compress and compact, leading to a faster rotation in order to maintain equilibrium.
Yes, there are exceptions to this rule. For example, Venus is a similar size to Earth but has a much slower spin, possibly due to its dense atmosphere and lack of large moons to influence its rotation. Additionally, some small moons and dwarf planets may have faster spins than larger planets due to their irregular shapes and varying compositions.