Why doesn't the gas planets just float away?

Answer 1

The gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are all mainly composed of gas the only solid being the core which is rock, and metallic, The gas giants are all 95% or greater made of hydrogen which is a very light gas, what keeps all these giant gas planets together is that Jupiter is 318 times as massive as Earth Saturn is about 95 and Uranus and Neptune are about 20 times as massive as Earth, Meaning that the gravity pull of the gas giants is much greater than Earths and is what keeps all these gases together.

Comment: Yes. Also the fact that the planets are so far from the Sun helps stop

gas molecules etc., reaching "escape velocity".

A "hot Jupiter" would be losing matter, we think.

Answer 2

Two things:

1. In space, there is nothing to 'float' in.

2. There is a tremedous total force of gravity holding all the planets in their orbits around the sun. It's like if you were to tie a string to a small ball, then swing the ball around and around you. The ball is like the planet, and the string is like gravity, keeping the ball from shooting out away from you.

Answer 3

I am not 100% sure but everything that has mass, has gravity, so I would venture to guess that the gravity of the massive planet holds it together.

Answer 4

The gas planets have rings because of the gravitational pull and the outward force of the gases causing any meteors to be trapped in the ring.

Answer 5

so the scientists said that all the planets should have gas just remember

Answer 6

Jupiter hold all the gasses in its atmosphere by gravitational attraction, just the way the other planets do.

Answer 7

Gravity is what causes ALL large celestial bodies to collapse into a sphere.