At what height body body escapes gravitational fields

In summary, the escape velocity of an object fired upward with a velocity of 11.2 km/s is equal to the Earth's radius, indicating that it will leave the gravitational field at that height. However, this is only applicable near the Earth's surface, and for other distances, a different formula for gravitational potential energy must be used. The Earth's gravitational field has no limit in range, but the force decreases as 1/r^2. The escape speed is not the same as the speed needed to throw a stone horizontally to orbit the Earth without landing, as it is lower by a factor of √2.
  • #1
mars shaw
10
0
When a body is fired upward with escape V (i.e 11.2 km/s) then what will be the height when the body leaves the gravitational field?
I found by using formula
2gh=Vf^2 - Vi^2 keeping vf= 0 and vi=11200m/s then I got h=6400km= radius of the earth.
Is it range of the gravitational field?
 
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  • #2
There is no limit to the range of the gravitational field.
What you calculated was the kinetic energy an object gains from falling from a very large distance (where it's speed is zero) to the surface of the earth.
This is pretty much the definition of escape velocity.

Remember that although the gravitational field goes on forever the gravitational potential energy reaches a limit, because as you go further away the field gets weaker. So if you launch an object with enough speed then when it reaches an infinite distance it will still have some ke.
This limiting speed is the escape velocity.
 
  • #3
mars shaw said:
When a body is fired upward with escape V (i.e 11.2 km/s) then what will be the height when the body leaves the gravitational field?
I found by using formula
2gh=Vf^2 - Vi^2 keeping vf= 0 and vi=11200m/s then I got h=6400km= radius of the earth.
Is it range of the gravitational field?
As mgb_phys says, there's no limit to the extent of the Earth's gravitational field. The equation you are using is only valid in regions close to the Earth's surface where the acceleration due to gravity is 9.8 m/s^2. For other distances, you need to use a different formula for the gravitational potential energy: PE = -GMm/r, where r is the distance from the Earth's center. Using that corrected expression you'll get r = ∞. (Which is no surprise, since this formula is used to calculate the escape velocity in the first place.)
 
  • #4
Bob_for_short said:
No, it is the Earth radius or so. The gravitational force decreases as 1/r2.

When you throw a stone at some velocity horizontally, it falls on the ground somewhere. The distance increases with the initial velocity. At v = 11.2 km/s the distance is equal to the Earth radius so the stone cannot land because the land surface "goes down". The stone misses the planet at such and higher horizontal velocities.
Nope. 11.2 km/s is the escape speed, not the speed you need to throw a stone horizontally so that it just orbits the Earth without landing. (Given the usual assumptions of a smooth, symmetrical Earth and an unobstructed path, of course.) That speed is less by a factor of √2--about 7.9 km/s.
 
  • #5
Yes, that's right. I made a mistake. This is a vertical velocity to fly away from the Earth surface R=6400 km to infinity.
 
Last edited:

1. What is the height at which a body can escape gravitational fields?

The height at which a body can escape gravitational fields is known as the "escape velocity." This height varies depending on the mass and density of the body, as well as the strength of the gravitational field it is escaping.

2. How is escape velocity calculated?

Escape velocity is calculated using the formula: v = √(2GM/r), where G is the gravitational constant, M is the mass of the body, and r is the distance from the center of the body to the object. This formula was derived by Isaac Newton in his theory of gravity.

3. What is the escape velocity of Earth?

The escape velocity of Earth is approximately 11.2 kilometers per second (6.95 miles per second). This means that in order for an object to escape Earth's gravitational field, it must reach a speed of 11.2 km/s.

4. Can any object escape a gravitational field?

Yes, any object can escape a gravitational field as long as it reaches or exceeds the escape velocity for that particular body. However, the amount of energy required to reach escape velocity may not be feasible for all objects.

5. What happens to an object once it escapes a gravitational field?

Once an object reaches escape velocity and escapes a gravitational field, it will continue to travel through space in a straight line at a constant speed unless acted upon by another force. This is known as "free fall" or "orbiting." If there are no other gravitational forces, the object will continue on this path indefinitely.

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