Asteroids have been moving through space for billions of years, Whta keeps them moving?

Question

Please give a structure response i need help with this one thank you

Answer 1

Interesting question. You can extend it - why does the Earth continue to turn on its axis? And circle the sun? Why does the sun circle the center of the galaxy? Why do things keep going, year after year for billions and billions of years?

Newton thought about this and came up with one of his famous laws: Without an external force, a body in motion stays in motion, a body at rest stays at rest.

The second half is easy. Put a rock on the floor and it will stay there forever until you pick it up. It won't move without an external force. So what if you shoot a bullet into the air. We all know it falls back, but why? Because the force of gravity acts on it. Take away gravity and it will still stop. Why? Because the friction of air on the bullet's surface will slow it down and finally stop it. Take away air, take away gravity, and the bullet will go on forever.

So to answer your question: Simply put, the asteroids have no forces to stop them. Gravity keeps them trapped around the sun, but they outside of the range where they fall in, so they simply continue to go around, just like the planets such as Earth. The asteroids started in motion at the formation of the solar system 4.5 billion years ago, and except for random collisions that altered courses and accelerated (or decelerated) the rocks, no force has acted on them to slow them down. A perfect example of Newton's law, even more amazing because Newton did not know of the existence of asteroids.

Answer 2

There are many forces that come into existence.Inertia of motion keeps the asteroids moving.Newton's first law of motion states that every body in this universe continues to be at the state of rest or uniform motion,until and unless acted by an external force.There's nothing to stop the asteroids from moving in space. Another force is the force of gravity.Asteroid belt between mars and jupiter orbit the sun because of gravity.Also the centripetal force keeps it in it's orbit and the centrifugal force keeps it within it's orbit,so as to not let asteroids deviate from their orbital path.At times,gravity of earth attracts these asteroids but very few make to the earth's surface.

Answer 3

Newton's first law of motion states that: "Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it."

Here on Earth objects thrown or propelled without a continuous means of thrust will eventually slow down and fall to earth due, to friction applied to the said object and the pull of gravity from the Earth. The friction or wind resistance if you prefer is cause by the movement of an object through the atmosphere which displaces the air and thus causes friction.

In space there is no air to displace so there is no friction to slow objects down. So the only thing that can change an asteroid's motion is another asteroid of equal or larger size, or some other large body of gravity.

Example: If you fired a gun on Earth the bullet would travel in an arc and displace air around it causing friction to build up thus slowing the bullet down from loss of kenetic energy. If however, you were to fire the same gun in space the bullet would travel in a relatively straight line and displace no air. It would continue to travel in that path until an external force was applied to it such as gravity from Earth or it colided with another object such as an asteroid.

Since space is a vacume and the only gravity that exists is that which comes from other objects in space. An asteroid will continue indefinately until it comes into contact with a greater force than it self.

Answer 4

Inertia. Newton's First Law of Motion declares that a body at rest or in motion will stay at rest or in motion respectively unless acted upon by an outside force.

Since they're in a vacuum, asteroids that have been moving for billions of years have had no outside force like fluid drag to act upon them to stop them from moving.

Answer 5

It's more a question of what started them moving. As there is nothing in space to slow them down (no atmosphere) they remain at a constant speed and direction until an extarnal force acts upon them. ( ie gravitational pull, other space "junk" etc)

Answer 6

There is no gravity to stop them.Need to hit something that has enough mass to absorb them or get caught in an orbit to keep from flying in a straight line forever.

Answer 7

Inertia

Answer 8

Internal energy

Answer 9

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