If a huge astroid hit a planet, could it make it gain momentum and start to glide out of this solar system?

Question

like what happens to billiard balls

Answer 1

Yes. So long as the astroid is big enough and fast enough. that is a possible scenario

Answer 2

It takes a LOT of momentum transfer to make a planet reach escape velocity. For the earth to reach escape velocity from the sun, it would need to reach a speed of 42.1 km/s. It's present velocity is 30 km/s, so it would need to gain about 12 km/s in momentum.

The largest body in the asteroid belt is Ceres (technically now called a dwarf planet, not an asteroid, but let's use it as an example anyway), with a mass of 9.5 ×10^20 kg. The Earth has a mass of 5.9742×10^24 kg. Thus the Earth weighs 6,300 times as much as Ceres. If an object the size of Ceres were to hit the earth, it would need to be moving at a speed of 75,000 km/s to impart sufficient momentum to the earth for it to achieve escape velocity. This is about 25% of the speed of light. No object of any size is known to travel at such a speed.

Answer 3

Sure.
But I would not say it gains momentum. It is shattered and the debris starts drifting (or shooting) away from its original position.
That's where asteroids come from in the first place.
Theory has it that most of the debris stays roughly in the same orbit, as seen in the asteroid belt beyond Mars or the Kuiper Belt.

Answer 4

if it came in at the right angle it could skip off of our atmosphere. our planet is not solid like a billard ball so if it was hit by something big enough to move it our planet would break into pieces.

Answer 5

It would have to be an asteroid about the size of a planet.

Answer 6

yes ofcourse...but it is only applicable if the asteroid is big enough to make it gain momentum.....

Answer 7

no gravity would not let it