uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff.
 

We have launched several things into space. Does this not reduce the mass of Earth and change it's orbit over time?

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff.
 

Yes [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] The effect is negligible though because the Earth is so massive. Compare the mass of the Earth to the mass of a space shuttle, for instance.

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff
 

Kinda like vacuuming your car doesn't do wonders for its brake distance? [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff
 

According to the wikipedia article for space dust:

"40 tons per day of extraterrestrial material falls to the Earth"

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff
 

[ QUOTE ]
We have launched several things into space. Does this not reduce the mass of Earth and change it's orbit over time?

[/ QUOTE ]

Our solar system, our galaxy and the universe are constantly evolving. Everything changes all the time.

The earth is absolutely doomed for destruction when the sun dies.

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff
 

[ QUOTE ]
Our solar system, our galaxy and the universe are constantly evolving. Everything changes all the time.

The earth is absolutely doomed for destruction when the sun dies.

[/ QUOTE ]
lol. What does this have to do with anything? Can you make a video explaining the part about the Earth being destroyed using deodorant canisters please?

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Our solar system, our galaxy and the universe are constantly evolving. Everything changes all the time.

The earth is absolutely doomed for destruction when the sun dies.

[/ QUOTE ]
lol. What does this have to do with anything? Can you make a video explaining the part about the Earth being destroyed using deodorant canisters please?

[/ QUOTE ]


It puts the question in perspective.

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff.
 

Launching a satellite into Earth orbit does not reduce the mass of the Earth by the mass of the satellite for the purposes of analyzing the Earth-Sun system, or the Earth-Moon system. Sending the Pioneer space probes on trajectories out of the solar system did affect the mass of Earth.

Launching satellites decreases the weight of things left on Earth. As a first approximation, layers of the Earth at higher altitudes do not have a net gravitational effect on you by the shell theorem. Putting a satellite into orbit does not have quite the same effect as spreading it into a spherical shell above you, but it is similar.

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff
 

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It puts the question in perspective.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're the last person who should be lecturing others on keeping things in perspective.

Re: uhuh, maah, anser ma stoopid question about the universe and stuff
 

As many others have mentioned, the amount of mass leaving is not only negligible compared to the mass of the earth but is negligible compared to the mass added to the earth every day by material from space.

It's also important to note that adding mass doesn't change an orbit. This is analogous to how the mass on the end of a pendulum doesn't change its frequency (for small angle), only the length of its armature or the strength of gravity can induce a change in the period .