What two things does weight depend on?
weight ( ) 1. The force with which an object near the Earth or another celestial body is attracted toward the center of the body by gravity. An object’s weight depends on its mass (the amount of matter it consists of) and the strength of the gravitational pull.
How often did objects collide in the early solar system?
Scientists estimate that Earth and the other terrestrial planets are struck by, on average, five asteroids less than 2 km (a little over 1 mile) across every million years.
What would happen if 2 planets collide?
If two planets pass closely by one another in orbit, one can perturb the other, resulting in a massive orbital change. These two planets could collide, one of them could get ejected, or one could even get hurled into their central star.
What came first solar system?
Formation. Our solar system formed about 4.5 billion years ago from a dense cloud of interstellar gas and dust. The cloud collapsed, possibly due to the shockwave of a nearby exploding star, called a supernova. When this dust cloud collapsed, it formed a solar nebula—a spinning, swirling disk of material.
Can planets crash into each other?
As they evolve, the dust particles continue to collide and eventually become small enough that they are either blown out of a system or pulled into the star. A planetary collision, however, would easily inject a large amount of dust very quickly. This provides more evidence that two exoplanets crashed into each other.
What keeps planets from crashing into each other?
What keeps planets in their orbit is the balance between the opposing forces of gravity and inertia. The sun’s gravity pulls planets toward it, and inertia keeps planets moving in a straight line.
How old is Theia?
Scientists have long agreed that the Moon formed when a protoplanet, called Theia, struck Earth in its infancy some 4.5 billion years ago.
Is Theia a deity?
THEIA was the Titan goddess of sight (thea) and the shining ether of the bright, blue sky (aithre). She was also, by extension, the goddess who endowed gold and silver with their brilliance and intrinsic value. Her name was derived from the Greek words thea “sight” and theiazô “prophesy”.