How far is Earth from the Sun ?athymy said:Homework Statement
What is the escape speed of a spaceship fired in space, far away from Earth but at the same distance from the sun as the Earth.
Homework Equations
Ve = (2GM/r)^0.5
The Attempt at a Solution
The problem is that I don't know what the M or r is since it is fired from space... Should I just assume that the mass is the sun's and for r I just add the suns radius with the distance from the Earth to the sun?
SammyS said:How far is Earth from the Sun ?
That's how far the spaceship is from the Sun .
athymy said:Ahh, so Earth is approx. 150,000,000 km from the sun so is that my r value?
Dick said:Yes. Sure it is.
Escape velocity is the minimum speed an object needs to achieve in order to break free from the gravitational pull of a massive body, such as a planet or moon.
Escape velocity can be calculated using the equation v = sqrt(2GM/r), where v is the escape velocity, 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's starting point.
The factors that affect escape velocity include the mass of the body and the distance from the center of the body. A larger mass or a smaller distance will result in a higher escape velocity.
Yes, escape velocity can be achieved in space. In fact, all objects in orbit around a massive body, such as a planet, are constantly experiencing escape velocity. The only difference is that their forward motion keeps them in a stable orbit.
Escape velocity is important for space travel as it determines the amount of energy and speed needed for a spacecraft to successfully leave a planet or moon and enter into orbit or reach another destination in space. It also plays a role in the formation and stability of planetary systems.