Astronomy
On Monday (December 28), Randall Munroe released an XKCD comic on gravity wells. It's a funny, but accurate, way to look at and compare the sizes and masses of the bodies in the solar system. So what exactly is a gravity well?
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Two places on opposite sides of Earth may hold the secret to how the moon was born. NASA's twin Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) spacecraft are about to enter these zones, known as the L4 and L5 Lagrangian points, each centered about...
- Our Neighbors In Space
We have a special feeling toward the other planets that circle our sun. Maybe it?s all the science fiction stories about visiting the moon, Mars and other planets. But we love to think about those planets that make up what we call ?the solar...
- Planet Jupiter
Jupiter Mass ...
- Solar System
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- Astronomy: Our Space Neighbors
We have a special feeling toward the other planets that circle our sun. Maybe it?s all the science fiction stories about visiting the moon, Mars and other planets. But we love to think about those planets that make up what we call ?the solar...
Astronomy
Solar System Gravity Wells
Gravity wells are just a handy way to display the gravitational potential field around an object. The comic shows gravity wells for the planets and other bodies in the solar system. If these wells existed on the Earth, with constant Earth surface gravity, it would take the same amount of energy to escape from the well as it would to escape from the planet's gravity in reality. So, as the comic shows, to escape from Deimos, one of the moons of Mars, you would just need a bike and a ramp, just as if you had to climb out of a well almost as tall as you (about 1.62 meters or 5.53 feet).
I also found it interesting that Randall Munroe decided to show the planets' sizes as well when drawing the gravity wells. It effectively shows Jupiter's greater density than Saturn.
Be sure to explore the entire comic by clicking it above to view a larger image. There's a lot of great things hidden in the comic (like an explanation of the differences in rocket size of the Apollo missions, a "Your mom" joke between Jupiter and Saturn, and Carl Sagan on Neptune).
Comic: Randall Munroe, XKCD
Astronomy and Space Celebrates International Year of Astronomy 2009.
- Twin Spacecraft May Reveal Secret Of Moon's Origin
Two places on opposite sides of Earth may hold the secret to how the moon was born. NASA's twin Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) spacecraft are about to enter these zones, known as the L4 and L5 Lagrangian points, each centered about...
- Our Neighbors In Space
We have a special feeling toward the other planets that circle our sun. Maybe it?s all the science fiction stories about visiting the moon, Mars and other planets. But we love to think about those planets that make up what we call ?the solar...
- Planet Jupiter
Jupiter Mass ...
- Solar System
Solar System Facts The Solar System formed around 4.6 billion years ago. There are eight planets in the Solar System. The four inner planets are Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars while the four outer planets are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.For...
- Astronomy: Our Space Neighbors
We have a special feeling toward the other planets that circle our sun. Maybe it?s all the science fiction stories about visiting the moon, Mars and other planets. But we love to think about those planets that make up what we call ?the solar...