Suppose there is a long hole in the earth which opens up at the other end. if we drop an object from one side, it will keep falling, when it reaches the other side, again gravity will work and it will fall on the other side again. So it will keep falling. Is this right or will something else happen?
2006-06-13 03:30:22 · 11 answers · asked by sa_cool 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
This is a cool question. If you were able to tunnel through the Earth, and fall through, your speed would keep increasing until you reached the graviational center. At that point, the net gravitational force is zero, because all of the forces cancel. However, you wouldn't just stop because of your inertia. You would go right through, but then you would begin to slow down, until you reached the other hole. Depending on how high you started from the first hole, and lets say you jumped five feet above the hole, you would come to a complete stop five feet above the second hole. Then you would fall back through and continue that cycle. (Of course we aren't considering air resistance, which screws everything up! ;0)
Guess how long it would take to make it to the other side of the Earth through that tunnel? Approximately 42 minutes! Not a bad way of traveling.
The other cool thing is, if you were to tunnel from say New York to Berlin, which means the tunnel isn't obviously through the middle of the Earth, it would still take you 42 minutes!
2006-06-13 05:05:55 · answer #1 · answered by phyziczteacher 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Assume the earth is not rotating and you have a hole with no air or other materials. Then the object dropped will go back and forth forever in a sinusoidal motion. For a rotating earth, the object would fairly quickly hit the sides of the hole. And of course, if there is air in the hole, the friction would eventually slow the object down until it stabilizes at the center of the earth.
The reason the object keeps going when at the center of the earth is that it will have a velocity there, but the net force will be zero. Force is what induces acceleration, so the velocity won't change as it passes by the center. It turns out that the gravitational effect of the mass outside of whatever radius the object is cancels out, so that the net gravitational force is induced from the mass closer to the center than the object is. This causes the motion to be simple harmonic (assuming no rotation or air).
2006-06-13 10:37:08 · answer #2 · answered by mathematician 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The acceleration due to gravity at the surface of earth is the maximum. Inside the earth the “g” decreases.
This is because; inside the earth the mass on one side is greater than in the other side.
At the center of the earth the mass is equally distributed on all other side. The ‘g’ at the center is zero.
When any object that enters the hole is pulled toward the center. When it reaches the center the speed is the maximum. Even though the force is zero at the center, because of the speed it goes to the other extreme. When it reaches the other extreme its speed is zero; but now it is pulled to ward the center. Thus it oscillates between the two entrances of the holes, like a bob in simple pendulum.
2006-06-13 11:07:25 · answer #3 · answered by Pearlsawme 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The value of g ie gravitational acceleration is zero at the centre. So if there's a long tunnel through the centre of the earth which opens up at a diametrically opposite point, and if an object falls through it, it will fall till it reaches the centre, then as it slows down, it will again start accelerating till it reaches any one end. Then it will not fall, it will in fact begin its return journey. Its an example of simple harmonic motion.
2006-06-13 10:44:08 · answer #4 · answered by know it all 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The force of gravity increases as you get to the center of the earth. Being greatest in the center, it would stop and stay in the center, never making it to the other side. Regardless of the hole going all the way through.
2006-06-13 10:36:09 · answer #5 · answered by witchdoctor_h 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If there was no friction, then yes the object would oscillate back and forth with a period of 84 minutes. It's a relatively famous things called Schuler tuning.
There's some math here: http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/mechanics/earthole.html
With friction, the object would have dampened oscillation and eventually get stuck in the middle.
2006-06-13 10:35:07 · answer #6 · answered by Arbitrage 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You guys have to work this our for yourselves. The answer is not going to be what you have been taught, but if you believe what the numbers say, your concept of this concept will change.
0.717 miles from the core point of our planet, a mass existing in this location has the potential of acceleration 25 mps less than the speed of light. At 0.716 miles from the core point of our planet, a mass released in this location would exceed the speed of light.
The answer is, THE MOVING MASS WOULD CONVERT INTO ELECTROMAGNETIC ENERGY AND CEASE TO EXIST. It would have to be that, or form a "black hole". Work it our for yourselves.
2006-06-13 11:58:46 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It would keep falling, except you have air resistance. With the air resistance, the object wouldn't quite go as far, so it would settle in the center.
2006-06-13 10:34:01 · answer #8 · answered by Amarkov 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ohhhh. I got a headache just trying to reason through this question, but I think when it gets halfway through it will get stuck because the gravitational pull will be at both ends.
2006-06-13 10:36:10 · answer #9 · answered by butrcupps 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no by using the integral law of gravity formulated by sir reen masterfield.itz clear tht it will settle on the central part slightly near the end frm wich it was thrwn.
2006-06-13 10:38:11 · answer #10 · answered by Jammy 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋