At what height body body escapes gravitational fields

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the concept of escape velocity and the height at which a body leaves the gravitational influence of the Earth. Participants explore the implications of escape velocity, gravitational potential energy, and the characteristics of gravitational fields, with a focus on theoretical and conceptual aspects.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant calculates the height at which a body escapes Earth's gravitational field using the formula 2gh = Vf^2 - Vi^2, concluding that it is equal to the Earth's radius (6400 km).
  • Another participant clarifies that there is no limit to the range of the gravitational field and explains that the calculated height corresponds to kinetic energy gained from falling from a large distance to the Earth's surface.
  • A different participant emphasizes that the formula used is only valid near the Earth's surface and suggests using gravitational potential energy (PE = -GMm/r) for distances further away, indicating that the escape height approaches infinity.
  • One participant discusses the relationship between horizontal velocity and escape speed, noting that 11.2 km/s is the escape speed, while the speed required for a stone to orbit without landing is approximately 7.9 km/s.
  • A later reply acknowledges a mistake, confirming that 11.2 km/s is indeed the vertical velocity needed to escape to infinity.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the interpretation of escape velocity, the applicability of certain formulas, and the nature of gravitational fields. No consensus is reached regarding the specific height at which a body escapes the gravitational field.

Contextual Notes

Participants note limitations in the formulas used, particularly regarding their applicability at different distances from the Earth's surface and the assumptions underlying the calculations.

mars shaw
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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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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.
 
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.)
 
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.
 
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.
 
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