If enough heat is applied to an object, will it reach escape speed?

[HallsofIvy]

By the way, your original question was "If you apply enough heat to an object will it reach escape speed?" That is what the original posters were responding to. The idea that you were referring to individual molecules of a gas had to be postulated by others.

 

[Remon]

By the way, your original question was "If you apply enough heat to an object will it reach escape speed?" That is what the original posters were responding to. The idea that you were referring to individual molecules of a gas had to be postulated by others.

Well at first I said "object" but then I remembered that whatever object it is, its just going to turn into a gas anyways before ever reaching escape speed since it would normally go through the two other states before ever reaching escape speed, with gas obviously being the final state so I just switched from "object" to "gas"

 

[davenn]

Well at first I said "object" but then I remembered that whatever object it is, its just going to turn into a gas anyways before ever reaching escape speed since it would normally go through the two other states before ever reaching escape speed, with gas obviously being the final state so I just switched from "object" to "gas"

and can you see how this causes confusion, when people give answers based on your original question and then you suddenly change path mid way through the thread

This is why we ALWAYS encourage people asking questions to provide ALL the details up front and put that info into a good structured question(s)

Its helps us to give meaningful answers to the question poster

cheers
Dave

 

[anorlunda]

Think of molecules on the surface of as comet. Obviously, they reach escape velocity when warmed by the sun.

 

[the_emi_guy]

Lets keep in mind that temperature dictates *average* molecular speed. Some particles will be traveling many times faster than average at any frozen moment in time.

 

[Baluncore]

“Too much” of anything is bad for you; Because it implies “too much to be good”.

If enough heat is applied to an object, will it reach escape speed?

The simple answer is YES. That is because in the context of the OP title question, the term “enough” implies “sufficient to reach escape velocity”.

The question then becomes “how much is enough”, to which the answer comes down to a specification; do the molecules or atoms need to actually reach free space, or is escape velocity acceptable even though it is only for the few millimetres to the next collision. Another specification is; “how long you must maintain the heat”.

The plasma in the Earth's ionosphere is hot enough and high enough to escape into space. A small proportion of the ionosphere is lost to space each day.

 

[gabriel.dac]

No ... escape they DO as Integral said

present tense. Hydrogen ( and possibly Helium) is still being produce naturally and is still escaping


Dave

Uhh no, there is almost no H and He in our atmosphere. There could have been before, but now there is almost nothing. You are taking things too literally

 

[davenn]

Uhh no, there is almost no H and He in our atmosphere. There could have been before, but now there is almost nothing. You are taking things too literally

uhhh yes...
do some geology 101

hydrogen and hydrogen mixes and other gasses are being released continuously by volcanic eruptions and other general volcanic activity

Volcanic Gases

An erupting volcano will release gases, tephra, and heat into the atmosphere. The largest portion of gases released into the atmosphere is water vapor. Other gases include carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), hydrochloric acid (HCl), hydrogen fluoride (HF), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen gas (H2), NH3, methane (CH4), and SiF4.

Dave