Gravity in the Middle of a Planet: Puzzling Questions

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the effects of gravity at the center of a planet, particularly focusing on hypothetical scenarios involving digging a hole through the Earth. Participants explore the implications of gravity in this context, including the behavior of an object or person falling into such a hole.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests that at the exact center of the Earth, gravity would be zero, leading to a state where one would be "stuck" there.
  • Another participant proposes that if one were to jump into a hole bored through the Earth, they would oscillate back and forth due to gravitational forces, eventually coming to rest at the center.
  • A further contribution mentions that the time taken to reach the center would not depend on the height from which one starts, implying a resonance effect.
  • One participant references an external source for a more rigorous discussion on the topic.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants present differing views on the effects of gravity at the center of the Earth, with some asserting that gravity is zero while others discuss the oscillatory motion of an object falling through the hole. The discussion remains unresolved with competing perspectives on the nature of gravity in this scenario.

Contextual Notes

Assumptions regarding the uniformity of the Earth's density and the neglect of factors such as air resistance and heat at the core are present but not explicitly stated by participants.

cosmicpencil
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ok, this may seem comical, but here it goes,:blushing:

lets say I dig a hole right trough the planet, ignoring the heat at the core and bla bla bla
and I get to the exact middle of the sphere. how will be the efffect of gravity there, will I get tossed from one side to the other of will I just keep going feeling nothing has changed.Or will I stay stuck in the middle,lets say I trow myself down this hole, will I like pop out the other end then fall back in and pop at the end from where I jumed in? and so on so forth, how would my fall be affected.
thanks again, for shedding some light on my poor understanding of this phenomenone.
 
Last edited:
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If you shovely your way to the center of the earth, you will be stuck there. Gravity at the center of the Earth is zero. If you jump into a hole bored all the way through the earth, you will yo-yo back and forth. Air friction will slow you down with each cycle until, once again, you end up stuck in the middle with you.
 
also you would resonate. the time to reach the center would not depend on the height of your starting point.
 

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