if this were to happen, would we know instantly or would we have to wait 8.5 minutes to feel these effects. if we feel it instantly, does this mean that gravitons or gravity waves can travel faster than light?
2006-09-25 11:10:26 · 23 answers · asked by frankiethebear2002 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
The correct answer is that as far as gravity is concerned, nobody knows for sure (yet). Most of the answers given treated gravity as a force carried by particles or waves (gravitons or gravity waves), which is one way of looking at gravity that works in many situations. Gravity is also, according to relativity, a deformation of space itself caused by mass. In that definition there is no need for particles or waves, or "transmission" of the force of gravity at all -- it just is. The quantum bunch is currently betting on the 8.5 minute delay, many relativisits think it would be gone immediately if the sun "disappeared" (which can't really happen instantaneously anyway, so it's all a mental exercise). This is the kind of problem that gives those trying to unify relativity with quantum physics headaches. We don't know yet.
2006-09-25 12:33:17 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
We would have to wait 8.5 minutes. Gravity and light both travel at the speed of light. Nothing really travels faster than that except some quantum interactions that we don't fully understand yet.
I would take about 4 days for the earth to really freeze up and start killing us all. Prob the best place to be would be near the ocean, but it would just delay the inevitable.
2006-09-25 11:14:16 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
No,
it will take about 8 minutes for sun to disappear from the sky as this is the time it takes light to travel 93 million miles. Gravitons travel at c the same as all the other force carriers.
2006-09-25 11:23:36 · answer #3 · answered by Mark G 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
We are in orbit around the sun as soon as the mass of the sun is removed we would continue to move in a straight line. No one would notice until the sun winked out seven or eight minutes later (remember we would be moving away from the sun as soon as it disappeared) then it would start to get cold. As to gravity it holds us to the sun with the sun gone we would move away from the area of its disturbance it is not likely that the earth and moon would collide with another planet. The movement away would happen to all the planets at the same time making them move outwards and away. Space time would be changed by the disappearance of the sun as its mass warps space but as it is impossible to make the sun disappear faster then light effects could happen as space would be suddenly straightened where it was once warped.
2006-09-25 11:59:09 · answer #4 · answered by Aerroc 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
We would not know instantly - it would take over 8 minutes (I think the correct value is 8.3 minutes, but I'd have to look it up) for us to feel/see/know anything about it. Gravity (or gravitons) travels at the speed of light.
2006-09-25 11:14:45 · answer #5 · answered by kris 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
We would probably have to wait around 8 minutes before we
noticed anything...
Even if a few theoreticians are correct and gravity let lose instantly
then we might still not notice anything sooner than 8 minutes..
It is the earths gravity that sticks us to the ground, not the Suns.
2006-09-25 14:38:48 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its not quite that simple.... the light would take 8.4 minutes to vanish and then a period of time for the earth to freeze, but the gravitational forces that would be altered by the sun vanishing would immediately change the Earth's trajectory, and possible alter the axis spin, which would affect gravity.
If the earths spin increased then we would be squashed by the increased gravity, or if it decreased we would fly off into the vacuum of space, along with the atmosphere.
However if the sun instantaenously vanished the gravimetric shear alone would destroy the planet.
2006-09-25 11:36:30 · answer #7 · answered by jezterfezter 3 · 3⤊ 1⤋
like quite a few different clientele pronounced, a minor shift interior the Suns orbit and rotation could ensue, yet different than that it wouldnt be counted. Earth disappearing could have an result on different heavenly bodies such because of the fact the moon, because of the fact it wouldnt have something to orbit around and could in all probability effect yet another planet or proceed in a right now line into the darkness of area till it fell into the orbit of yet another planet.
2016-10-01 08:51:18 · answer #8 · answered by schugmann 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The cold would hit straight away. the whole process leading up to plant life and then animal life to human life would be around three months. Not sure about gravity waves.
2006-09-25 11:31:57 · answer #9 · answered by Tabbyfur aka patchy puss 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Well, conventional theory suggests we would know 8.3 minutes (approx.) after the event. But what if it happened overnight? Would we have to wait until the following day to become aware of the loss?
2006-09-25 11:35:44 · answer #10 · answered by Sean M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋