If the sun suddenly disappeared - would the Earth lose orbit instantly, or would it continue to orbit around the sun's previous location for the next 8 minutes (i.e. time it would take light to reach the Earth)?
2006-12-21 21:38:30 · 11 answers · asked by Nikos 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
speed of light
2006-12-21 21:40:01 · answer #1 · answered by Dashes 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
Only quantum entanglement can be thought of as instantaneous over any distance. Gravity 'waves' are presumed to travel at light speed. What would happen if the sun disappeared is that each planet would fly off on a tangent to its orbit in the order of its distance away - first Mercury, then Venus, Earth, etc. Since they would leave their orbits at different times there would be the possibility of colliding with other planets, not that it would matter much with the sun gone.
2006-12-22 04:27:29 · answer #2 · answered by hznfrst 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This question is, again, about frames of reference. If the sun suddenly disappeared you would not see it was missing until the light from the sun suddenly stopped reaching us. Essentially, in our frame of reference the sun would still be there even though in the sun's frame of reference, it would have disappeared.
Edthescienceguy, the magnetic field is a component of the electromagnetic field which is carried by the photon (boson). This travels at the speed of light also. Remember, a magnetic field can not exist independant of an electric field and vice verca, they are two sides to the same coin. As a science teacher you should know this inside and out!
2006-12-21 22:00:06 · answer #3 · answered by Mawkish 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Standard experimental techniques exist to determine the propagation speed of forces. When we apply these techniques to gravity, they all yield propagation speeds too great to measure, substantially faster than light-speed. This is because gravity, in contrast to light, has no detectable aberration or propagation delay for its action. If the mass of the sun were to disappear entirely and instantly - all of the planets would essentially travel in a straight path tangental to their orbital path at the time the mass disappeared. A paragraph from the first website also reads: '.......These objections were certainly not new when I raised them. They have been raised and answered thousands of times in dozens of different ways over the years since General Relativity (GR) was set forth in 1916. Even today in discussions of gravity in USENET newsgroups on the Internet, the most frequently asked question and debated topic is “What is the speed of gravity?” It is only heard less often in the classroom because many teachers and most textbooks head off the question by hastily assuring students that gravitational waves propagate at the speed of light, leaving the firm impression, whether intended or not, that the question of gravity’s propagation speed has already been answered.' I think this para makes an extremely important point and the info on that website makes interesting reading. Another viewpoint - the WEC Theory Of Orbital Mechanics (sometimes simply referred to as WECTOOM), however, maintains that if the Sun were to suddenly disappear, the planets would continue to orbit for some length of time as if it were still there. This theory rests on the behavior related to the gravitational anomoly in which cartoon characters, having run off the edge of a cliff, will remain suspended until they actually notice that there is nothing holding them up. Likewise, the planets in the solar system will continue to act as if gravitationally bound to the sun for some time in defiance of the conventional laws of physics. Once each of the planets notices that it's getting a bit nippy, and chances to look in the direction of where the sun used to be, normal physical laws will once again take precedence, and they will stop circling around a no-longer-applicable gravity well. I think we should consider both these possibilities and keep our minds open, because who really knows for SURE?!
2006-12-21 21:57:07 · answer #4 · answered by uknative 6 · 2⤊ 4⤋
The Earth would continue to orbit for eight minutes and some nineteen seconds as though the sun were still there. Then it would fly off at a tangent into space.
2006-12-21 21:48:54 · answer #5 · answered by Tropic-of-Cancer 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
according to newtonian theory,, earth will escape instetiniously but according to einsteins general theory of relativity gravity is in wave form and it travels in space. if sun dissapears suddenly then after 7 minute< i.e time taken t travel the light from sun to earth> we will discover that the sun's gravitational force dissappeared.
2006-12-21 21:58:21 · answer #6 · answered by acharya 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
gravity is not a force technically,it is a property of space that extends infinitely.mass creates ripples in space so the affect is instantaneous.if the sun disappeared,the earth wold instantly loos its orbit because that massive space bend wouldn't be their
2006-12-22 08:12:51 · answer #7 · answered by the professor 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
c2 = E/m is the equation for a gravitational field. This form of energy is a product of mass and energy and has as its limitation of existence that of what forms it. Mass is composed of electromagnetic energy, and the speed limitation of this form of energy is the same as the "c2" factor. This would limit the existence of these waves to that of the speed of light.
http://timebones.blogspot.com or
http://360.yahoo.com/noddarc may be of interest.
2006-12-23 05:27:26 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Good question and some interesting answers. I have often wondered the same about magnetic fields.
2006-12-21 22:17:55 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It wouldn't matter because we'd all be dead in a very short time. I think you would have to ask Stephen Hawking to get the correct technical answer.
2006-12-21 21:47:24 · answer #10 · answered by Ted T 5 · 0⤊ 7⤋