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Q:
Propulsion in space? If I press my hand against a wall and push, I move away from the wall. With no wall there, the same motion by me creates no movement other than my hand relative to my body. In space with nothing to "push off of" how do you speed up?
A:
That’s a really common question! Rockets use expanding gas to move in space. If you think of the engine like a balloon, there’s gas inside pushing on all sides. Let go, and the air still pushes on the front, but some escapes out the back. Since the air is pushing harder on the front than on the back, the balloon moves forward. In a rocket, burning rocket fuel creates expanding gas that pushes in all directions. The gas pushes harder on the front while escaping out the back, and the rocket moves forward. Thanks for asking such an interesting question!
Posted on September 3, 2012 at 12:36 pm
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