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The Earth is increasing mass, doesn't thet cause gravity change?

2006-07-11 13:35:58 · 22 answers · asked by Sandy J 1 in Science & Mathematics Physics

22 answers

It revolves around the sun in a vacuum. Nothing is slowing its speed. The amount of mass it gains every year is insignificant to the total original mass. The earth weights SIX SEXTILLION tons.

2006-07-11 13:37:23 · answer #1 · answered by kanajlo 5 · 0 0

The earth is rotating around the sun with sufficient velocity to negate the pull of gravity. On the other hand, it's the pull of gravity that allows the earth to achieve that velocity, and maintain orbit. I'm not exactly sure what you mean by "perfect orbit" because the earth orbit does vary slightly around the sun. Not only is it an ellipse, it's an imperfect ellipse, with small changes from year to year.

The mass of the earth is not increasing. Some people have said that the mass of the earth is increasing because of all the life living on it - that, I have to say, is bunk. Those people don't realize where those living creatures come from - we're made of the earth (and I mean on a molecular level, not the religious method).

The sun is losing mass, however, very, very slowly. So, as a consequence, the earth is moving farther away from the sun. However, this change is on the matter of a fraction of an inch every few hundred thousand years, so is insignificant.

2006-07-11 13:50:00 · answer #2 · answered by michelsa0276 4 · 0 0

The earth does not increase in mass. Quite the opposite, we are steadily losing atmosphere, and in a few billion years, won't have any. This is unlikely to significantly affect the orbit, since the mass of the atmosphere is insignificant to the mass of the earth itself.

Nor is the earth's orbit perfect by any means, there are wobbles and eccentricities a plenty.

The earth's orbit does slow down, mostly due to friction with the solar wind, but again, the amount is insignificant. Long before the earth lost it's orbital velocity around the sun, the sun will have gone to Red Giant stage and burned up the earth entirely.

2006-07-11 13:41:19 · answer #3 · answered by Xymon 2 · 0 0

Actually its NOT TRUE that we will lose atmosphere in a few billion years, calculations show that at the rate the atmosphere dissipates into space, it would take 3 life-times of the earth to totally exhaust our atmosphere, or around 9 billion years.

We gain around 100,000 metric tons of space dust, meteroites and other objects that fall to earth annually. The earth is in an elliptical orbit around the sun that is slowly moving FURTHER OUTWARD, NOT INWARD towards the sun. Also, the Moon is moving away from the Earth at the distance of about 1/2" to 1" inch per year.

So, we travel the gravity well around our sun, with our companion planet which we call the "Moon." However, we've always denoted it as a satellite, so that's what its called, a moon. No other planet has a satellite that is in such GREAT proportion to it as the Moon is to the Earth. At its creation, the Moon was 18x bigger on the horizon than it is now.

2006-07-11 14:45:48 · answer #4 · answered by AdamKadmon 7 · 0 0

No.

If a scientists compares the pressure in the photosphere with the air pressure here on Earth (at sea level), they will find it is much much less. Mass on earth is different to mass in the universe, so no matter how much increase the earth has in mass, the gravity will not change because gravity pull in the universe is a million times over.

It's like for example, a small balloon on an ocean will be floating on top of the surface of the ocean. If the sea rises or the sea ocean) lowers it's level or intake, the balloon will still float on top of the sea. Hence, the gravity won't change.

2006-07-11 13:44:20 · answer #5 · answered by Adam Taha 4 · 0 0

Space is curved by the gravitational force of the sun, actually, the earth is moving in a straight line, except the space we are traveling in is curved. Imagine a bowling ball in the middle of a stretched out bedsheet. The space curves around the ball, and if you could roll a marble into it, it would seem to the marble to be going in a straight line, but in fact is appears to an outside observer to be orbiting. The earth's mass change is so minimal compared to the overall mass, plus the fact the in a vacuum, you are without friction losses (for the most part), so the momentum has stayed relatively constant for us over the past few billion years.

2006-07-11 14:36:40 · answer #6 · answered by sir_osis_of_liver2002 1 · 0 0

When the solar system formed, matter was going different speeds. That was a long time ago. The matter that was going to fall into the sun already has had plenty of time to do so. The matter that was going to fly out of the solar system also has had plenty of time to do so. What's left is the matter in stable orbits, such as the Earth. Like a previous poster said, the Earth is so heavy that the tiny increase in mass isn't making any relevent difference.

2006-07-11 13:55:50 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

The Earth orbits the sun in an ellipse and is not a "perfect "circle. Centripital force keeps the Earth at its orbital distance. Objects in motion tend to stay in motion untill acted apon by an apposing force.

2006-07-11 13:47:51 · answer #8 · answered by S.A.M. Gunner 7212 6 · 0 0

Inertia, the planet wants to fly off in a straight line forever, gravity pulls it in, the two are in balance so around and around the planets go. From the perspective of our tiny time frame it seems eternal, from the perspective of universal time it will last a little while then explode or fall in on itself.
Oh, and Australians don't fall off because they're just too pig headed.

2006-07-11 13:41:44 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

The earth is held by the axis. The earth's force of gravity is constant regardless of the changes.

2006-07-11 13:42:36 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

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