0
votes
1answer
102 views

Earth's rotation isn't that orbit?

If the earth is rotating at some $465~\text{m}/\text{s}$ at the equator and that's really fast. Shouldn't we in that case be in orbit with the earth just not fast enough? How fast do we need to ...
0
votes
2answers
82 views

How is space ship's acceleration perceived if the acceleration is perpendicular to the velocity?

Spacecraft in orbit around the Earth are constantly accelerated by the gravitational field of Earth. That's why the spacecraft ($m \ll M$) is in an (elliptical) orbit around the centre of gravity of ...
3
votes
2answers
232 views

Will two trains running along the equator in opposite direction experience same wear out?

Two identical trains, at the equator start travelling round the world in opposite directions. They start together, run at the same speed and are on different tracks. Which train will wear out its ...
0
votes
1answer
125 views

Vertical Loop like Anti-gravity

Let's take a bottle (no cap) with half its volume filled with water. If we rotate the bottle at some slower average velocity, water does not drop out of it. The same principle works on Roller ...
0
votes
1answer
60 views

Would we feel the rotation of a rotating habitat?

Assume that a space habitat is shaped like a can with the "top" open. lets say we attach the can's top to a string with an astronaut standing on the base. We then rotate the can in deep space using ...
0
votes
3answers
1k views

Centripetal/Gravitational Force

Suppose a satellite is orbiting the Earth. The gravitational and centripetal force supposedly point towards the Earth. Therefore, the net force is towards the Earth. Since the satellite doesn't fall ...
33
votes
7answers
3k views

Why is the Earth so fat?

I made a naive calculation of the height of Earth's equatorial bulge and found that it should be about 10km. The true height is about 20km. My question is: why is there this discrepancy? The ...