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Assuming a spacecraft is traveling in a constant rate and our Astronaut will exit it to a space walk, will he be “left behind†by the spacecraft?
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Lets say our Spacecraft is traveling to a remote Galaxy at a constant speed of 1/X of the speed of light.
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
- hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
- be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Is there any difference between such a situation when orbiting the Earth and when being in the deep space?
spacecraft interplanetary spacewalk
edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
asked 11 hours ago
riorio
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up vote
8
down vote
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Lets say our Spacecraft is traveling to a remote Galaxy at a constant speed of 1/X of the speed of light.
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
- hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
- be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Is there any difference between such a situation when orbiting the Earth and when being in the deep space?
spacecraft interplanetary spacewalk
edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
asked 11 hours ago
riorio
1474
New contributor
riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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2
Is there a reason you think this would be different than a typical space-walk in Earth orbit?
– JPhi1618
7 hours ago
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up vote
8
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up vote
8
down vote
favorite
Lets say our Spacecraft is traveling to a remote Galaxy at a constant speed of 1/X of the speed of light.
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
- hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
- be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Is there any difference between such a situation when orbiting the Earth and when being in the deep space?
spacecraft interplanetary spacewalk
edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
asked 11 hours ago
riorio
1474
New contributor
riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Lets say our Spacecraft is traveling to a remote Galaxy at a constant speed of 1/X of the speed of light.
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
- hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
- be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Is there any difference between such a situation when orbiting the Earth and when being in the deep space?
spacecraft interplanetary spacewalk
spacecraft interplanetary spacewalk
edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
asked 11 hours ago
riorio
1474
New contributor
riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
asked 11 hours ago
riorio
1474
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riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
edited 51 mins ago
RonJohn
1999
1999
asked 11 hours ago
riorio
1474
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riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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asked 11 hours ago
riorio
1474
asked 11 hours ago
riorio
1474
1474
New contributor
riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
riorio is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
2
Is there a reason you think this would be different than a typical space-walk in Earth orbit?
– JPhi1618
7 hours ago
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2
Is there a reason you think this would be different than a typical space-walk in Earth orbit?
– JPhi1618
7 hours ago
2
2
Is there a reason you think this would be different than a typical space-walk in Earth orbit?
– JPhi1618
7 hours ago
Is there a reason you think this would be different than a typical space-walk in Earth orbit?
– JPhi1618
7 hours ago
add a comment |Â
7 Answers
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As long as neither spacecraft nor the astronaut are accelerating or decelerating, the relative speed of the spacecraft and the astronaut remains the same. So the astronaut will hover near the spacecraft.
The actual velocity is irrelevant here, it's the same principle with every spacewalk: the ISS is moving at about 27,600 km/h, yet the astronauts do not "get left behind" when they exit for a space walk. They, too, move at about 27,600 km/h. They do move at a very slight relative velocity when they move along the spacecraft, though.
Things change if your spacecraft is accelerating or decelerating, though: in this case the astronaut needs to remain attached to the spacecraft to not get lost. As soon as they would let go, their current velocity would remain the same but the spacecraft would continue to change its velocity and the two would get further and further apart.
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
9
@papakias No, because gravity will pull on both the ISS and the astronaut the same. Drag will slow the ISS more rapidly due to surface area, but that effect will take hours or days to make itself obvious.
– Saiboogu
9 hours ago
5
I would elaborate that the gravitational force on ISS is greater than on an astronaut as it has more mass, but also this mass makes it accelerate slower that if the same amount of force was applied to the astronaut. Things basically cancel out, and the gravitational acceleration is the same for everyone.
– NikoNyrh
7 hours ago
1
@Saiboogu, agreed, although if the astronaut was not tethered and even just 1 metre away from the ISS and completed a full orbit, the astronauts orbit would be fractionally different and therefore the ISS would move away very slightly, and each orbit that distance would increase, and now that i think about it the lighter astronaut would be more susceptable to atmospheric drag, even with how thin the atmosphere is at that altitude
– Blade Wraith
7 hours ago
2
I would emphasize that there is no unaccelerated flight -- there's always some mass somewhere (stars, galaxies etc.). The key issue is that the masses are usually so far away that the resulting gravitational field can be considered homogeneous with very little error and thus affects bodies that are "close" to each other (close relative to the closest significant gravitational sources) equally. That would not be the case in low orbit, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/….
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
1
@BladeWraith, not quite. If the astronaut were 1 meter away, in a homogeneous gravity field, they would co-orbit each other, or, more likely, oscillate in distance to each other. Better visualization: youtube.com/watch?v=cxNJoaBLLNM -- And, atmospheric drag depends entirely on the relationship to surface area hitting the atmosphere relative to weight... which usually correlates to an object's density. Spacecraft being intentionally light, and usually quite hollow, a spacewalking human is more dense than the ISS, so will experience less atmospheric drag.
– Ghedipunk
3 hours ago
 |Â
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13
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I feel this sort of question benefits from a series of thought experiments.
Imagine instead that you've got two astronauts, side by side, zipping through space at some constant speed.
They're kind of sweet on each other so they're holding hands. Awwwww.
But then they suffer a cruel change of heart and stop holding hands!
What do you imagine would happen?
Does anything change if one of the astronauts is much fatter than the other?
If we replace the very fat astronaut with a spacecraft, does that change anything?
(I'm asking these questions quasi-rhetorically, for the benefit of the original question-asker. No need to answer me in comments.)
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
5
What about the mutual gravity force? Until they hold their hands, they can remain at a fixed distance, but when they let go they slowly start approaching ;)
– frarugi87
8 hours ago
2
@frarugi87 how sweet! They can't avoid being nearer and nearer to each other...Awww :D
– BlueCoder
8 hours ago
1
If the partner of the very fat astronaut is replaced by a black hole the black hole gets to have vay fatty spaghetti for lunch.
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider If the partner is replaced by a black hole, there are two options: (1) you've just created mass from nowhere, pushing this wweeelllll out of the realm of predictable, or (2) the black hole evaporates instantly, turning the fat astronaut into a Pittsburgh Rare and / or superheated gas.
– wizzwizz4
1 hour ago
1
Re: gravity, note that the escape velocity of a 150kg astronaut+suit is only 56.06 nanometers / second. Good luck getting your velocity below that.
– imallett
1 hour ago
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up vote
4
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Another way to think is to consider two space walking astronauts; one inside the ship and one outside. Neither is touching the ship, both are moving at essentially the same speed in the same direction. All three pretty much stay together.
However, there could be a teeny tiny amount of acceleration experienced by each. For example, at an extremely high velocity, even the tiny impulse caused by each interstellar proton hitting a body can cause a bit of drag. The "indoor" space walker won't experience it, and so won't be slowed at all, but the ship will, and so will the "outdoor" space walker. It's not clear which one would be affected more, it depends on their cross-sectional areas and masses.
Then there are tidal effects. If there is a distant gravitational source, and there always is, that will accelerate all three the same. But if you are fairly close to a source of gravity, then it is possible that it affects them slightly differently because they will each have a very slightly different distance from the source.
For more on that see answers to Lowest ISS microgravity and for fun see How to get sunburned through the window of a General Products hull?
And before your ship does another neutron-star flyby to accelerate so fast, remember that what humans call UV is not the only thing that gets through a General Products Hull!
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
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2
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no, conservation of momentum is retained (an object in motion will remain in motion unless something acts upon it)...similar to being in an airplane and throwing a ball up in the air...seems like it should fly to the back of the airplane, but it won't...it'll act just like you were on the ground.
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
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Let's tackle this with a slightly different question:
Which falls faster? A bowling ball or a feather?
Now, everyone knows the feather will fall slowly, but that's because the feather has a massive surface area to catch the air around it. Without air resistance they fall at the same rate (see the video below for a most impressive display of that principle)
If an astronaut exits a spacecraft moving at 17,000 mph, they're still moving at a relative 17,000 mph because there's nothing to slow the astronaut down.
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
2
Actually the hammer falls somewhat faster (if the objects fall not together but one after the other) because it pulls the earth towards itself just a tad stronger, so that the two collide a bit earlier. (My 10 year old remarked that when I suggested the feather/hammer experiment. Ouch.)
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider The difference is negligible. The formula for gravitational attraction (when you account for the mass of the Earth) bears this out (I had a physics teacher make us do that math). Either way, the experiment shows how a vacuum changes things
– Machavity
7 hours ago
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up vote
1
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Not enough rep to post as comment, but here goes:
It turns out that outer space is not a perfect vacuum: there are a few hydrogen atoms per cubic centimeter. (reference)
For large X, non-relativistic physics, the astronaut and spacecraft will stay close enough to each other.
Once X gets small, and you approach the speed of light, these hydrogen atoms could slow down your spacecraft. Therefore, to maintain constant speed against this "apparent headwind" you'd have to apply force to the spacecraft, and the space-walker would not be subjected to that same force.
My hypothesis is that the astronaut will slowly be left behind.
Disclaimers: not a physicist
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
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A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Newton's First Law of Motion ("an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force") means that the astronaut -- who is traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship while inside the ship -- will continue traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship when he steps out of it.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
add a comment |Â
7 Answers
7
active
oldest
votes
7 Answers
7
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
26
down vote
As long as neither spacecraft nor the astronaut are accelerating or decelerating, the relative speed of the spacecraft and the astronaut remains the same. So the astronaut will hover near the spacecraft.
The actual velocity is irrelevant here, it's the same principle with every spacewalk: the ISS is moving at about 27,600 km/h, yet the astronauts do not "get left behind" when they exit for a space walk. They, too, move at about 27,600 km/h. They do move at a very slight relative velocity when they move along the spacecraft, though.
Things change if your spacecraft is accelerating or decelerating, though: in this case the astronaut needs to remain attached to the spacecraft to not get lost. As soon as they would let go, their current velocity would remain the same but the spacecraft would continue to change its velocity and the two would get further and further apart.
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
9
@papakias No, because gravity will pull on both the ISS and the astronaut the same. Drag will slow the ISS more rapidly due to surface area, but that effect will take hours or days to make itself obvious.
– Saiboogu
9 hours ago
5
I would elaborate that the gravitational force on ISS is greater than on an astronaut as it has more mass, but also this mass makes it accelerate slower that if the same amount of force was applied to the astronaut. Things basically cancel out, and the gravitational acceleration is the same for everyone.
– NikoNyrh
7 hours ago
1
@Saiboogu, agreed, although if the astronaut was not tethered and even just 1 metre away from the ISS and completed a full orbit, the astronauts orbit would be fractionally different and therefore the ISS would move away very slightly, and each orbit that distance would increase, and now that i think about it the lighter astronaut would be more susceptable to atmospheric drag, even with how thin the atmosphere is at that altitude
– Blade Wraith
7 hours ago
2
I would emphasize that there is no unaccelerated flight -- there's always some mass somewhere (stars, galaxies etc.). The key issue is that the masses are usually so far away that the resulting gravitational field can be considered homogeneous with very little error and thus affects bodies that are "close" to each other (close relative to the closest significant gravitational sources) equally. That would not be the case in low orbit, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/….
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
1
@BladeWraith, not quite. If the astronaut were 1 meter away, in a homogeneous gravity field, they would co-orbit each other, or, more likely, oscillate in distance to each other. Better visualization: youtube.com/watch?v=cxNJoaBLLNM -- And, atmospheric drag depends entirely on the relationship to surface area hitting the atmosphere relative to weight... which usually correlates to an object's density. Spacecraft being intentionally light, and usually quite hollow, a spacewalking human is more dense than the ISS, so will experience less atmospheric drag.
– Ghedipunk
3 hours ago
 |Â
show 2 more comments
up vote
26
down vote
As long as neither spacecraft nor the astronaut are accelerating or decelerating, the relative speed of the spacecraft and the astronaut remains the same. So the astronaut will hover near the spacecraft.
The actual velocity is irrelevant here, it's the same principle with every spacewalk: the ISS is moving at about 27,600 km/h, yet the astronauts do not "get left behind" when they exit for a space walk. They, too, move at about 27,600 km/h. They do move at a very slight relative velocity when they move along the spacecraft, though.
Things change if your spacecraft is accelerating or decelerating, though: in this case the astronaut needs to remain attached to the spacecraft to not get lost. As soon as they would let go, their current velocity would remain the same but the spacecraft would continue to change its velocity and the two would get further and further apart.
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
9
@papakias No, because gravity will pull on both the ISS and the astronaut the same. Drag will slow the ISS more rapidly due to surface area, but that effect will take hours or days to make itself obvious.
– Saiboogu
9 hours ago
5
I would elaborate that the gravitational force on ISS is greater than on an astronaut as it has more mass, but also this mass makes it accelerate slower that if the same amount of force was applied to the astronaut. Things basically cancel out, and the gravitational acceleration is the same for everyone.
– NikoNyrh
7 hours ago
1
@Saiboogu, agreed, although if the astronaut was not tethered and even just 1 metre away from the ISS and completed a full orbit, the astronauts orbit would be fractionally different and therefore the ISS would move away very slightly, and each orbit that distance would increase, and now that i think about it the lighter astronaut would be more susceptable to atmospheric drag, even with how thin the atmosphere is at that altitude
– Blade Wraith
7 hours ago
2
I would emphasize that there is no unaccelerated flight -- there's always some mass somewhere (stars, galaxies etc.). The key issue is that the masses are usually so far away that the resulting gravitational field can be considered homogeneous with very little error and thus affects bodies that are "close" to each other (close relative to the closest significant gravitational sources) equally. That would not be the case in low orbit, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/….
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
1
@BladeWraith, not quite. If the astronaut were 1 meter away, in a homogeneous gravity field, they would co-orbit each other, or, more likely, oscillate in distance to each other. Better visualization: youtube.com/watch?v=cxNJoaBLLNM -- And, atmospheric drag depends entirely on the relationship to surface area hitting the atmosphere relative to weight... which usually correlates to an object's density. Spacecraft being intentionally light, and usually quite hollow, a spacewalking human is more dense than the ISS, so will experience less atmospheric drag.
– Ghedipunk
3 hours ago
 |Â
show 2 more comments
up vote
26
down vote
up vote
26
down vote
As long as neither spacecraft nor the astronaut are accelerating or decelerating, the relative speed of the spacecraft and the astronaut remains the same. So the astronaut will hover near the spacecraft.
The actual velocity is irrelevant here, it's the same principle with every spacewalk: the ISS is moving at about 27,600 km/h, yet the astronauts do not "get left behind" when they exit for a space walk. They, too, move at about 27,600 km/h. They do move at a very slight relative velocity when they move along the spacecraft, though.
Things change if your spacecraft is accelerating or decelerating, though: in this case the astronaut needs to remain attached to the spacecraft to not get lost. As soon as they would let go, their current velocity would remain the same but the spacecraft would continue to change its velocity and the two would get further and further apart.
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
As long as neither spacecraft nor the astronaut are accelerating or decelerating, the relative speed of the spacecraft and the astronaut remains the same. So the astronaut will hover near the spacecraft.
The actual velocity is irrelevant here, it's the same principle with every spacewalk: the ISS is moving at about 27,600 km/h, yet the astronauts do not "get left behind" when they exit for a space walk. They, too, move at about 27,600 km/h. They do move at a very slight relative velocity when they move along the spacecraft, though.
Things change if your spacecraft is accelerating or decelerating, though: in this case the astronaut needs to remain attached to the spacecraft to not get lost. As soon as they would let go, their current velocity would remain the same but the spacecraft would continue to change its velocity and the two would get further and further apart.
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
edited 10 hours ago
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
answered 10 hours ago
DarkDust
4,86412044
4,86412044
9
@papakias No, because gravity will pull on both the ISS and the astronaut the same. Drag will slow the ISS more rapidly due to surface area, but that effect will take hours or days to make itself obvious.
– Saiboogu
9 hours ago
5
I would elaborate that the gravitational force on ISS is greater than on an astronaut as it has more mass, but also this mass makes it accelerate slower that if the same amount of force was applied to the astronaut. Things basically cancel out, and the gravitational acceleration is the same for everyone.
– NikoNyrh
7 hours ago
1
@Saiboogu, agreed, although if the astronaut was not tethered and even just 1 metre away from the ISS and completed a full orbit, the astronauts orbit would be fractionally different and therefore the ISS would move away very slightly, and each orbit that distance would increase, and now that i think about it the lighter astronaut would be more susceptable to atmospheric drag, even with how thin the atmosphere is at that altitude
– Blade Wraith
7 hours ago
2
I would emphasize that there is no unaccelerated flight -- there's always some mass somewhere (stars, galaxies etc.). The key issue is that the masses are usually so far away that the resulting gravitational field can be considered homogeneous with very little error and thus affects bodies that are "close" to each other (close relative to the closest significant gravitational sources) equally. That would not be the case in low orbit, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/….
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
1
@BladeWraith, not quite. If the astronaut were 1 meter away, in a homogeneous gravity field, they would co-orbit each other, or, more likely, oscillate in distance to each other. Better visualization: youtube.com/watch?v=cxNJoaBLLNM -- And, atmospheric drag depends entirely on the relationship to surface area hitting the atmosphere relative to weight... which usually correlates to an object's density. Spacecraft being intentionally light, and usually quite hollow, a spacewalking human is more dense than the ISS, so will experience less atmospheric drag.
– Ghedipunk
3 hours ago
 |Â
show 2 more comments
9
@papakias No, because gravity will pull on both the ISS and the astronaut the same. Drag will slow the ISS more rapidly due to surface area, but that effect will take hours or days to make itself obvious.
– Saiboogu
9 hours ago
5
I would elaborate that the gravitational force on ISS is greater than on an astronaut as it has more mass, but also this mass makes it accelerate slower that if the same amount of force was applied to the astronaut. Things basically cancel out, and the gravitational acceleration is the same for everyone.
– NikoNyrh
7 hours ago
1
@Saiboogu, agreed, although if the astronaut was not tethered and even just 1 metre away from the ISS and completed a full orbit, the astronauts orbit would be fractionally different and therefore the ISS would move away very slightly, and each orbit that distance would increase, and now that i think about it the lighter astronaut would be more susceptable to atmospheric drag, even with how thin the atmosphere is at that altitude
– Blade Wraith
7 hours ago
2
I would emphasize that there is no unaccelerated flight -- there's always some mass somewhere (stars, galaxies etc.). The key issue is that the masses are usually so far away that the resulting gravitational field can be considered homogeneous with very little error and thus affects bodies that are "close" to each other (close relative to the closest significant gravitational sources) equally. That would not be the case in low orbit, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/….
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
1
@BladeWraith, not quite. If the astronaut were 1 meter away, in a homogeneous gravity field, they would co-orbit each other, or, more likely, oscillate in distance to each other. Better visualization: youtube.com/watch?v=cxNJoaBLLNM -- And, atmospheric drag depends entirely on the relationship to surface area hitting the atmosphere relative to weight... which usually correlates to an object's density. Spacecraft being intentionally light, and usually quite hollow, a spacewalking human is more dense than the ISS, so will experience less atmospheric drag.
– Ghedipunk
3 hours ago
9
9
@papakias No, because gravity will pull on both the ISS and the astronaut the same. Drag will slow the ISS more rapidly due to surface area, but that effect will take hours or days to make itself obvious.
– Saiboogu
9 hours ago
@papakias No, because gravity will pull on both the ISS and the astronaut the same. Drag will slow the ISS more rapidly due to surface area, but that effect will take hours or days to make itself obvious.
– Saiboogu
9 hours ago
5
5
I would elaborate that the gravitational force on ISS is greater than on an astronaut as it has more mass, but also this mass makes it accelerate slower that if the same amount of force was applied to the astronaut. Things basically cancel out, and the gravitational acceleration is the same for everyone.
– NikoNyrh
7 hours ago
I would elaborate that the gravitational force on ISS is greater than on an astronaut as it has more mass, but also this mass makes it accelerate slower that if the same amount of force was applied to the astronaut. Things basically cancel out, and the gravitational acceleration is the same for everyone.
– NikoNyrh
7 hours ago
1
1
@Saiboogu, agreed, although if the astronaut was not tethered and even just 1 metre away from the ISS and completed a full orbit, the astronauts orbit would be fractionally different and therefore the ISS would move away very slightly, and each orbit that distance would increase, and now that i think about it the lighter astronaut would be more susceptable to atmospheric drag, even with how thin the atmosphere is at that altitude
– Blade Wraith
7 hours ago
@Saiboogu, agreed, although if the astronaut was not tethered and even just 1 metre away from the ISS and completed a full orbit, the astronauts orbit would be fractionally different and therefore the ISS would move away very slightly, and each orbit that distance would increase, and now that i think about it the lighter astronaut would be more susceptable to atmospheric drag, even with how thin the atmosphere is at that altitude
– Blade Wraith
7 hours ago
2
2
I would emphasize that there is no unaccelerated flight -- there's always some mass somewhere (stars, galaxies etc.). The key issue is that the masses are usually so far away that the resulting gravitational field can be considered homogeneous with very little error and thus affects bodies that are "close" to each other (close relative to the closest significant gravitational sources) equally. That would not be the case in low orbit, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/….
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
I would emphasize that there is no unaccelerated flight -- there's always some mass somewhere (stars, galaxies etc.). The key issue is that the masses are usually so far away that the resulting gravitational field can be considered homogeneous with very little error and thus affects bodies that are "close" to each other (close relative to the closest significant gravitational sources) equally. That would not be the case in low orbit, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/….
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
1
1
@BladeWraith, not quite. If the astronaut were 1 meter away, in a homogeneous gravity field, they would co-orbit each other, or, more likely, oscillate in distance to each other. Better visualization: youtube.com/watch?v=cxNJoaBLLNM -- And, atmospheric drag depends entirely on the relationship to surface area hitting the atmosphere relative to weight... which usually correlates to an object's density. Spacecraft being intentionally light, and usually quite hollow, a spacewalking human is more dense than the ISS, so will experience less atmospheric drag.
– Ghedipunk
3 hours ago
@BladeWraith, not quite. If the astronaut were 1 meter away, in a homogeneous gravity field, they would co-orbit each other, or, more likely, oscillate in distance to each other. Better visualization: youtube.com/watch?v=cxNJoaBLLNM -- And, atmospheric drag depends entirely on the relationship to surface area hitting the atmosphere relative to weight... which usually correlates to an object's density. Spacecraft being intentionally light, and usually quite hollow, a spacewalking human is more dense than the ISS, so will experience less atmospheric drag.
– Ghedipunk
3 hours ago
 |Â
show 2 more comments
up vote
13
down vote
I feel this sort of question benefits from a series of thought experiments.
Imagine instead that you've got two astronauts, side by side, zipping through space at some constant speed.
They're kind of sweet on each other so they're holding hands. Awwwww.
But then they suffer a cruel change of heart and stop holding hands!
What do you imagine would happen?
Does anything change if one of the astronauts is much fatter than the other?
If we replace the very fat astronaut with a spacecraft, does that change anything?
(I'm asking these questions quasi-rhetorically, for the benefit of the original question-asker. No need to answer me in comments.)
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
5
What about the mutual gravity force? Until they hold their hands, they can remain at a fixed distance, but when they let go they slowly start approaching ;)
– frarugi87
8 hours ago
2
@frarugi87 how sweet! They can't avoid being nearer and nearer to each other...Awww :D
– BlueCoder
8 hours ago
1
If the partner of the very fat astronaut is replaced by a black hole the black hole gets to have vay fatty spaghetti for lunch.
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider If the partner is replaced by a black hole, there are two options: (1) you've just created mass from nowhere, pushing this wweeelllll out of the realm of predictable, or (2) the black hole evaporates instantly, turning the fat astronaut into a Pittsburgh Rare and / or superheated gas.
– wizzwizz4
1 hour ago
1
Re: gravity, note that the escape velocity of a 150kg astronaut+suit is only 56.06 nanometers / second. Good luck getting your velocity below that.
– imallett
1 hour ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
13
down vote
I feel this sort of question benefits from a series of thought experiments.
Imagine instead that you've got two astronauts, side by side, zipping through space at some constant speed.
They're kind of sweet on each other so they're holding hands. Awwwww.
But then they suffer a cruel change of heart and stop holding hands!
What do you imagine would happen?
Does anything change if one of the astronauts is much fatter than the other?
If we replace the very fat astronaut with a spacecraft, does that change anything?
(I'm asking these questions quasi-rhetorically, for the benefit of the original question-asker. No need to answer me in comments.)
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
5
What about the mutual gravity force? Until they hold their hands, they can remain at a fixed distance, but when they let go they slowly start approaching ;)
– frarugi87
8 hours ago
2
@frarugi87 how sweet! They can't avoid being nearer and nearer to each other...Awww :D
– BlueCoder
8 hours ago
1
If the partner of the very fat astronaut is replaced by a black hole the black hole gets to have vay fatty spaghetti for lunch.
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider If the partner is replaced by a black hole, there are two options: (1) you've just created mass from nowhere, pushing this wweeelllll out of the realm of predictable, or (2) the black hole evaporates instantly, turning the fat astronaut into a Pittsburgh Rare and / or superheated gas.
– wizzwizz4
1 hour ago
1
Re: gravity, note that the escape velocity of a 150kg astronaut+suit is only 56.06 nanometers / second. Good luck getting your velocity below that.
– imallett
1 hour ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
13
down vote
up vote
13
down vote
I feel this sort of question benefits from a series of thought experiments.
Imagine instead that you've got two astronauts, side by side, zipping through space at some constant speed.
They're kind of sweet on each other so they're holding hands. Awwwww.
But then they suffer a cruel change of heart and stop holding hands!
What do you imagine would happen?
Does anything change if one of the astronauts is much fatter than the other?
If we replace the very fat astronaut with a spacecraft, does that change anything?
(I'm asking these questions quasi-rhetorically, for the benefit of the original question-asker. No need to answer me in comments.)
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
I feel this sort of question benefits from a series of thought experiments.
Imagine instead that you've got two astronauts, side by side, zipping through space at some constant speed.
They're kind of sweet on each other so they're holding hands. Awwwww.
But then they suffer a cruel change of heart and stop holding hands!
What do you imagine would happen?
Does anything change if one of the astronauts is much fatter than the other?
If we replace the very fat astronaut with a spacecraft, does that change anything?
(I'm asking these questions quasi-rhetorically, for the benefit of the original question-asker. No need to answer me in comments.)
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
answered 9 hours ago
Roger
58916
58916
5
What about the mutual gravity force? Until they hold their hands, they can remain at a fixed distance, but when they let go they slowly start approaching ;)
– frarugi87
8 hours ago
2
@frarugi87 how sweet! They can't avoid being nearer and nearer to each other...Awww :D
– BlueCoder
8 hours ago
1
If the partner of the very fat astronaut is replaced by a black hole the black hole gets to have vay fatty spaghetti for lunch.
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider If the partner is replaced by a black hole, there are two options: (1) you've just created mass from nowhere, pushing this wweeelllll out of the realm of predictable, or (2) the black hole evaporates instantly, turning the fat astronaut into a Pittsburgh Rare and / or superheated gas.
– wizzwizz4
1 hour ago
1
Re: gravity, note that the escape velocity of a 150kg astronaut+suit is only 56.06 nanometers / second. Good luck getting your velocity below that.
– imallett
1 hour ago
add a comment |Â
5
What about the mutual gravity force? Until they hold their hands, they can remain at a fixed distance, but when they let go they slowly start approaching ;)
– frarugi87
8 hours ago
2
@frarugi87 how sweet! They can't avoid being nearer and nearer to each other...Awww :D
– BlueCoder
8 hours ago
1
If the partner of the very fat astronaut is replaced by a black hole the black hole gets to have vay fatty spaghetti for lunch.
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider If the partner is replaced by a black hole, there are two options: (1) you've just created mass from nowhere, pushing this wweeelllll out of the realm of predictable, or (2) the black hole evaporates instantly, turning the fat astronaut into a Pittsburgh Rare and / or superheated gas.
– wizzwizz4
1 hour ago
1
Re: gravity, note that the escape velocity of a 150kg astronaut+suit is only 56.06 nanometers / second. Good luck getting your velocity below that.
– imallett
1 hour ago
5
5
What about the mutual gravity force? Until they hold their hands, they can remain at a fixed distance, but when they let go they slowly start approaching ;)
– frarugi87
8 hours ago
What about the mutual gravity force? Until they hold their hands, they can remain at a fixed distance, but when they let go they slowly start approaching ;)
– frarugi87
8 hours ago
2
2
@frarugi87 how sweet! They can't avoid being nearer and nearer to each other...Awww :D
– BlueCoder
8 hours ago
@frarugi87 how sweet! They can't avoid being nearer and nearer to each other...Awww :D
– BlueCoder
8 hours ago
1
1
If the partner of the very fat astronaut is replaced by a black hole the black hole gets to have vay fatty spaghetti for lunch.
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
If the partner of the very fat astronaut is replaced by a black hole the black hole gets to have vay fatty spaghetti for lunch.
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider If the partner is replaced by a black hole, there are two options: (1) you've just created mass from nowhere, pushing this wweeelllll out of the realm of predictable, or (2) the black hole evaporates instantly, turning the fat astronaut into a Pittsburgh Rare and / or superheated gas.
– wizzwizz4
1 hour ago
@PeterA.Schneider If the partner is replaced by a black hole, there are two options: (1) you've just created mass from nowhere, pushing this wweeelllll out of the realm of predictable, or (2) the black hole evaporates instantly, turning the fat astronaut into a Pittsburgh Rare and / or superheated gas.
– wizzwizz4
1 hour ago
1
1
Re: gravity, note that the escape velocity of a 150kg astronaut+suit is only 56.06 nanometers / second. Good luck getting your velocity below that.
– imallett
1 hour ago
Re: gravity, note that the escape velocity of a 150kg astronaut+suit is only 56.06 nanometers / second. Good luck getting your velocity below that.
– imallett
1 hour ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
4
down vote
Another way to think is to consider two space walking astronauts; one inside the ship and one outside. Neither is touching the ship, both are moving at essentially the same speed in the same direction. All three pretty much stay together.
However, there could be a teeny tiny amount of acceleration experienced by each. For example, at an extremely high velocity, even the tiny impulse caused by each interstellar proton hitting a body can cause a bit of drag. The "indoor" space walker won't experience it, and so won't be slowed at all, but the ship will, and so will the "outdoor" space walker. It's not clear which one would be affected more, it depends on their cross-sectional areas and masses.
Then there are tidal effects. If there is a distant gravitational source, and there always is, that will accelerate all three the same. But if you are fairly close to a source of gravity, then it is possible that it affects them slightly differently because they will each have a very slightly different distance from the source.
For more on that see answers to Lowest ISS microgravity and for fun see How to get sunburned through the window of a General Products hull?
And before your ship does another neutron-star flyby to accelerate so fast, remember that what humans call UV is not the only thing that gets through a General Products Hull!
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
add a comment |Â
up vote
4
down vote
Another way to think is to consider two space walking astronauts; one inside the ship and one outside. Neither is touching the ship, both are moving at essentially the same speed in the same direction. All three pretty much stay together.
However, there could be a teeny tiny amount of acceleration experienced by each. For example, at an extremely high velocity, even the tiny impulse caused by each interstellar proton hitting a body can cause a bit of drag. The "indoor" space walker won't experience it, and so won't be slowed at all, but the ship will, and so will the "outdoor" space walker. It's not clear which one would be affected more, it depends on their cross-sectional areas and masses.
Then there are tidal effects. If there is a distant gravitational source, and there always is, that will accelerate all three the same. But if you are fairly close to a source of gravity, then it is possible that it affects them slightly differently because they will each have a very slightly different distance from the source.
For more on that see answers to Lowest ISS microgravity and for fun see How to get sunburned through the window of a General Products hull?
And before your ship does another neutron-star flyby to accelerate so fast, remember that what humans call UV is not the only thing that gets through a General Products Hull!
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
add a comment |Â
up vote
4
down vote
up vote
4
down vote
Another way to think is to consider two space walking astronauts; one inside the ship and one outside. Neither is touching the ship, both are moving at essentially the same speed in the same direction. All three pretty much stay together.
However, there could be a teeny tiny amount of acceleration experienced by each. For example, at an extremely high velocity, even the tiny impulse caused by each interstellar proton hitting a body can cause a bit of drag. The "indoor" space walker won't experience it, and so won't be slowed at all, but the ship will, and so will the "outdoor" space walker. It's not clear which one would be affected more, it depends on their cross-sectional areas and masses.
Then there are tidal effects. If there is a distant gravitational source, and there always is, that will accelerate all three the same. But if you are fairly close to a source of gravity, then it is possible that it affects them slightly differently because they will each have a very slightly different distance from the source.
For more on that see answers to Lowest ISS microgravity and for fun see How to get sunburned through the window of a General Products hull?
And before your ship does another neutron-star flyby to accelerate so fast, remember that what humans call UV is not the only thing that gets through a General Products Hull!
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
Another way to think is to consider two space walking astronauts; one inside the ship and one outside. Neither is touching the ship, both are moving at essentially the same speed in the same direction. All three pretty much stay together.
However, there could be a teeny tiny amount of acceleration experienced by each. For example, at an extremely high velocity, even the tiny impulse caused by each interstellar proton hitting a body can cause a bit of drag. The "indoor" space walker won't experience it, and so won't be slowed at all, but the ship will, and so will the "outdoor" space walker. It's not clear which one would be affected more, it depends on their cross-sectional areas and masses.
Then there are tidal effects. If there is a distant gravitational source, and there always is, that will accelerate all three the same. But if you are fairly close to a source of gravity, then it is possible that it affects them slightly differently because they will each have a very slightly different distance from the source.
For more on that see answers to Lowest ISS microgravity and for fun see How to get sunburned through the window of a General Products hull?
And before your ship does another neutron-star flyby to accelerate so fast, remember that what humans call UV is not the only thing that gets through a General Products Hull!
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
edited 8 hours ago
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
answered 8 hours ago
uhoh
31.6k15109390
31.6k15109390
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
no, conservation of momentum is retained (an object in motion will remain in motion unless something acts upon it)...similar to being in an airplane and throwing a ball up in the air...seems like it should fly to the back of the airplane, but it won't...it'll act just like you were on the ground.
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
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add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
no, conservation of momentum is retained (an object in motion will remain in motion unless something acts upon it)...similar to being in an airplane and throwing a ball up in the air...seems like it should fly to the back of the airplane, but it won't...it'll act just like you were on the ground.
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
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Joseph is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
up vote
2
down vote
no, conservation of momentum is retained (an object in motion will remain in motion unless something acts upon it)...similar to being in an airplane and throwing a ball up in the air...seems like it should fly to the back of the airplane, but it won't...it'll act just like you were on the ground.
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
New contributor
Joseph is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
no, conservation of momentum is retained (an object in motion will remain in motion unless something acts upon it)...similar to being in an airplane and throwing a ball up in the air...seems like it should fly to the back of the airplane, but it won't...it'll act just like you were on the ground.
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
New contributor
Joseph is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
New contributor
Joseph is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
answered 4 hours ago
Joseph
211
211
New contributor
Joseph is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Joseph is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Joseph is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
Let's tackle this with a slightly different question:
Which falls faster? A bowling ball or a feather?
Now, everyone knows the feather will fall slowly, but that's because the feather has a massive surface area to catch the air around it. Without air resistance they fall at the same rate (see the video below for a most impressive display of that principle)
If an astronaut exits a spacecraft moving at 17,000 mph, they're still moving at a relative 17,000 mph because there's nothing to slow the astronaut down.
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
2
Actually the hammer falls somewhat faster (if the objects fall not together but one after the other) because it pulls the earth towards itself just a tad stronger, so that the two collide a bit earlier. (My 10 year old remarked that when I suggested the feather/hammer experiment. Ouch.)
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider The difference is negligible. The formula for gravitational attraction (when you account for the mass of the Earth) bears this out (I had a physics teacher make us do that math). Either way, the experiment shows how a vacuum changes things
– Machavity
7 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
Let's tackle this with a slightly different question:
Which falls faster? A bowling ball or a feather?
Now, everyone knows the feather will fall slowly, but that's because the feather has a massive surface area to catch the air around it. Without air resistance they fall at the same rate (see the video below for a most impressive display of that principle)
If an astronaut exits a spacecraft moving at 17,000 mph, they're still moving at a relative 17,000 mph because there's nothing to slow the astronaut down.
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
2
Actually the hammer falls somewhat faster (if the objects fall not together but one after the other) because it pulls the earth towards itself just a tad stronger, so that the two collide a bit earlier. (My 10 year old remarked that when I suggested the feather/hammer experiment. Ouch.)
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider The difference is negligible. The formula for gravitational attraction (when you account for the mass of the Earth) bears this out (I had a physics teacher make us do that math). Either way, the experiment shows how a vacuum changes things
– Machavity
7 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
up vote
1
down vote
Let's tackle this with a slightly different question:
Which falls faster? A bowling ball or a feather?
Now, everyone knows the feather will fall slowly, but that's because the feather has a massive surface area to catch the air around it. Without air resistance they fall at the same rate (see the video below for a most impressive display of that principle)
If an astronaut exits a spacecraft moving at 17,000 mph, they're still moving at a relative 17,000 mph because there's nothing to slow the astronaut down.
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
Let's tackle this with a slightly different question:
Which falls faster? A bowling ball or a feather?
Now, everyone knows the feather will fall slowly, but that's because the feather has a massive surface area to catch the air around it. Without air resistance they fall at the same rate (see the video below for a most impressive display of that principle)
If an astronaut exits a spacecraft moving at 17,000 mph, they're still moving at a relative 17,000 mph because there's nothing to slow the astronaut down.
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
answered 7 hours ago
Machavity
2,0711734
2,0711734
2
Actually the hammer falls somewhat faster (if the objects fall not together but one after the other) because it pulls the earth towards itself just a tad stronger, so that the two collide a bit earlier. (My 10 year old remarked that when I suggested the feather/hammer experiment. Ouch.)
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider The difference is negligible. The formula for gravitational attraction (when you account for the mass of the Earth) bears this out (I had a physics teacher make us do that math). Either way, the experiment shows how a vacuum changes things
– Machavity
7 hours ago
add a comment |Â
2
Actually the hammer falls somewhat faster (if the objects fall not together but one after the other) because it pulls the earth towards itself just a tad stronger, so that the two collide a bit earlier. (My 10 year old remarked that when I suggested the feather/hammer experiment. Ouch.)
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider The difference is negligible. The formula for gravitational attraction (when you account for the mass of the Earth) bears this out (I had a physics teacher make us do that math). Either way, the experiment shows how a vacuum changes things
– Machavity
7 hours ago
2
2
Actually the hammer falls somewhat faster (if the objects fall not together but one after the other) because it pulls the earth towards itself just a tad stronger, so that the two collide a bit earlier. (My 10 year old remarked that when I suggested the feather/hammer experiment. Ouch.)
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
Actually the hammer falls somewhat faster (if the objects fall not together but one after the other) because it pulls the earth towards itself just a tad stronger, so that the two collide a bit earlier. (My 10 year old remarked that when I suggested the feather/hammer experiment. Ouch.)
– Peter A. Schneider
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider The difference is negligible. The formula for gravitational attraction (when you account for the mass of the Earth) bears this out (I had a physics teacher make us do that math). Either way, the experiment shows how a vacuum changes things
– Machavity
7 hours ago
@PeterA.Schneider The difference is negligible. The formula for gravitational attraction (when you account for the mass of the Earth) bears this out (I had a physics teacher make us do that math). Either way, the experiment shows how a vacuum changes things
– Machavity
7 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
Not enough rep to post as comment, but here goes:
It turns out that outer space is not a perfect vacuum: there are a few hydrogen atoms per cubic centimeter. (reference)
For large X, non-relativistic physics, the astronaut and spacecraft will stay close enough to each other.
Once X gets small, and you approach the speed of light, these hydrogen atoms could slow down your spacecraft. Therefore, to maintain constant speed against this "apparent headwind" you'd have to apply force to the spacecraft, and the space-walker would not be subjected to that same force.
My hypothesis is that the astronaut will slowly be left behind.
Disclaimers: not a physicist
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
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TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
Not enough rep to post as comment, but here goes:
It turns out that outer space is not a perfect vacuum: there are a few hydrogen atoms per cubic centimeter. (reference)
For large X, non-relativistic physics, the astronaut and spacecraft will stay close enough to each other.
Once X gets small, and you approach the speed of light, these hydrogen atoms could slow down your spacecraft. Therefore, to maintain constant speed against this "apparent headwind" you'd have to apply force to the spacecraft, and the space-walker would not be subjected to that same force.
My hypothesis is that the astronaut will slowly be left behind.
Disclaimers: not a physicist
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
New contributor
TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
up vote
1
down vote
Not enough rep to post as comment, but here goes:
It turns out that outer space is not a perfect vacuum: there are a few hydrogen atoms per cubic centimeter. (reference)
For large X, non-relativistic physics, the astronaut and spacecraft will stay close enough to each other.
Once X gets small, and you approach the speed of light, these hydrogen atoms could slow down your spacecraft. Therefore, to maintain constant speed against this "apparent headwind" you'd have to apply force to the spacecraft, and the space-walker would not be subjected to that same force.
My hypothesis is that the astronaut will slowly be left behind.
Disclaimers: not a physicist
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
New contributor
TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Not enough rep to post as comment, but here goes:
It turns out that outer space is not a perfect vacuum: there are a few hydrogen atoms per cubic centimeter. (reference)
For large X, non-relativistic physics, the astronaut and spacecraft will stay close enough to each other.
Once X gets small, and you approach the speed of light, these hydrogen atoms could slow down your spacecraft. Therefore, to maintain constant speed against this "apparent headwind" you'd have to apply force to the spacecraft, and the space-walker would not be subjected to that same force.
My hypothesis is that the astronaut will slowly be left behind.
Disclaimers: not a physicist
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
New contributor
TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
New contributor
TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
answered 18 mins ago
TomEberhard
1111
1111
New contributor
TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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New contributor
TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
TomEberhard is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Newton's First Law of Motion ("an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force") means that the astronaut -- who is traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship while inside the ship -- will continue traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship when he steps out of it.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Newton's First Law of Motion ("an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force") means that the astronaut -- who is traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship while inside the ship -- will continue traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship when he steps out of it.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
up vote
0
down vote
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Newton's First Law of Motion ("an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force") means that the astronaut -- who is traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship while inside the ship -- will continue traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship when he steps out of it.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
A brave Astronaut is leaving the spacecraft to a space walk, while not being attached to the spacecraft.
Will the astronaut
hover near the spacecraft at the same speed as it (1/X of speed of light), or
be quickly behind the spacecraft and will watch it disappear in the black horizon?
Newton's First Law of Motion ("an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force") means that the astronaut -- who is traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship while inside the ship -- will continue traveling at the same speed and direction as the ship when he steps out of it.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
1999
1999
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
riorio is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
riorio is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
riorio is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
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2
Is there a reason you think this would be different than a typical space-walk in Earth orbit?
– JPhi1618
7 hours ago