How much force would it take to push the Moon into the Earth?

Knowing the moon weighs approximately 7×10^22 kg and is orbiting at 1 km/s, it would take roughly 7×10^25 joules to slow its orbit down enough to crash it into earth.

Can we push the Moon away?

In other words, to move the moon out of its orbit, humanity would have to strike it in precisely the right location with a force 1.5 million times greater than our collective nuclear arsenal. As the moon gains energy, its orbit grows ever larger. On average, the moon floats 3 or 4 centimeters farther away every year.

Can the Moon get out of orbit?

In about 50 billion years, the Moon will stop moving away from us and settle into a nice, stable orbit. At this point, the Moon will take about 47 days to go around the Earth (currently, it takes a little over 27 days).

How much power would it take to move the Moon?

46 Million pounds-force thrust for 150 seconds maximum. Second Stage: 1 Million pounds-force thrust for 360 seconds maximum. Third/Final Stage: 225,000 pounds-force thrust for 500 seconds maximum (two individual burns, grouped).

What if we moved the moon?

Now, moving the Moon closer to the Earth will increase the gravitational exertion of the satellite onto our planet. If the satellite were slightly closer, the tidal bulge would grow. Low tides would be lower and high tides would be higher and any low lying coastline would be flooded.

How many nukes would it take to move the moon?

Here’s a piece from Gizmodo figuring that you’d need 9,000 bombs of the 15,000 kiloton “Castle Bravo” class to obliterate the entire surface of the moon.

How much energy does the moon have?

Scientists estimate that the Moon is likely to contain roughly 1 million tons of He-3, which translates to a hypothetical 10,000 years worth of energy. The reason why helium-3 is highly sought after is due to its unique properties.

How much energy would it take to stop the Moon from crashing?

The amount of energy needed to stop the moon and sending it crashing into the earth is about 3.7×10 28 joules. You would need about half that to accelerate the moon out of earth orbit.

How does the Moon get its kinetic energy?

The moon’s pull drags a portion of the Earth’s water out of its natural position, creating bulges at each end of the planet. As Earth rotates, these bulges exert a force on the moon, dragging it through orbit and adding to the moon’s kinetic energy. As the moon gains energy, its orbit grows ever larger.

How many joules does it take to change the Moon’s orbit?

If placed on the moon, each booster could produce 5×10 12 joules of energy toward changing the moon’s orbit. This means that it would take 6 quadrillion (that is 6 million billion) Saturn V first stage boosters to crash the moon into the earth.

Can we move the Moon out of its orbit?

In other words, to move the moon out of its orbit, humanity would have to strike it in precisely the right location with a force 1.5 million times greater than our collective nuclear arsenal. (And that’s assuming that every joule of energy from the warheads would be transferred to the moon’s motion—an absolute impossibility.)