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The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)
-- Your weight depends on the mass of the other mass to which you are gravitationallyattracted, and also on your distance from its center.-- The mass of the moon is much less than the mass of the Earth.-- The moon's surface is much closer to its center than the Earth's surface is to its center.
The moon orbits the earth. How do we know the earth doesn't orbit the moon? The planet with the bigger mass, therefore stronger gravity, is the one controlling the other, so since the earth is bigger than the moon, the moon orbits the earth, not vice versa. It's best to think of the Earth and Moon as one system. Each body attracts the other, in accordance with Newton's Law of Gravitation. Earth and Moon orbit around their common "center of mass". Because the Earth has about 80 times the mass of the Moon, this center of mass is actually inside the surface of the Earth.
The gravitational interaction of the Earth and Moon produces a number of effects. The most obvious of these is the orbital motion of the Moon around the Earth, but there is also a motion of the Earth around the center of mass of the Earth-Moon system, tidal effects on the Earth and Moon and professional effects on the Earth's axis of rotation.
The barycenter. The barycenter of the Earth - Moon system is inside the Earth about 2000 kilometers beneath the surface. The Barycenter of the Charon - Pluto system is in space between those celestial bodies.
The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)The distance from the center of mass to Earth, times the mass of the Earth, must be equal to the distance of the center of mass to the Moon, times the mass of the Moon. (For more than 2 objects, the calculation is somewhat more complicated - reading about "center of mass" can give you an idea.)
-- Your weight depends on the mass of the other mass to which you are gravitationallyattracted, and also on your distance from its center.-- The mass of the moon is much less than the mass of the Earth.-- The moon's surface is much closer to its center than the Earth's surface is to its center.
Both the Earth and the Moon move in the universe. Earth and Moon actually orbit their common center of mass. Together, the Earth and the Moon orbit the Sun, which itself is moving in the universe.
The center of mass of the Earth-Moon system.
The "barycenter" of any system - for example, the Earth and the Moon - is the center of mass, which is also the center of the orbital motion within the system. For Pluto and its "moon" Charon, the "barycenter" is somewhere between the two objects, which are of (very roughly) similar size. In the Earth-Moon system, the "barycenter" is not the center of the Earth itself, but is still located within the Earth. If it were not, then the Moon wouldn't be a "moon" at all; it would be a co-orbiting planet. So technically, Charon isn't a moon of Pluto, but a co-planet. Because the Sun contains about 99.5% of the mass of the entire solar system, the barycenter of the solar system is very close to the center of the Sun. Not quite exactly; Jupiter's mass moves the barycenter of the system very slightly.
The moon orbits the earth. How do we know the earth doesn't orbit the moon? The planet with the bigger mass, therefore stronger gravity, is the one controlling the other, so since the earth is bigger than the moon, the moon orbits the earth, not vice versa. It's best to think of the Earth and Moon as one system. Each body attracts the other, in accordance with Newton's Law of Gravitation. Earth and Moon orbit around their common "center of mass". Because the Earth has about 80 times the mass of the Moon, this center of mass is actually inside the surface of the Earth.
-- The Earth and the Moon both orbit their common center of mass ... the point where the pivot would have to be if the Earth and the Moon were on opposite ends of a see-saw. The Earth has about 80 times as much mass as the Moon has, so that point is actually inside the Earth. -- At the same time, the Sun and the Earth/Moon center of mass both orbit their common center of mass ... the point where the pivot would have to be if the Sun and the Earth/Moon common center of mass were on opposite ends of a see-saw. The Sun has more than a million times as much mass as the Earth/Moon has, so that point is actually inside the Sun.
Please, have a seat and hold onto your hat: -- The Earth and moon mutually orbit their common center of mass ... the spot where the pivot would have to be for the Earth and moon to balance on a see-saw. -- The Earth's mass is about 80 times the moon's mass. So their common center of mass is 80 times fartther from the moon's center than it is from the Earth's center. That point is inside the Earth, but not at its center. Both bodies orbit it. -- At the same time, the common center of mass of the Earth and moon orbits the sun.
The Earth's motion around a center of mass is due to the presence of the Moon. Technically, the Moon doesn't orbit the Earth, they both orbit the center of mass they share, which is about 4661 kilometers from the center of the Earth. In astronomy, the center of mass is also commonly referred to as the barycenter.
Technically, the earth and moon both revolve around their common center of mass. But since the earth has about 80 times as much mass as the moon has, their common center of mass is actually inside the earth. That's why, if you watched the motions of the two bodies from a seat located at the common center of mass, it would look to you as if the moon was revolving around you in a large orbit, whereas the earth was barely wiggling.
Ummmm.... No. The Moon orbits the Earth. The Earth orbits the Sun. The Sun orbits the center of the galaxy. Light things in orbit, heavier things in the center of the orbit. Well not exactly, they revolve around their common center of mass. This may or may not be at the exact center as far as distance. The common center of mass of the Moon and the Earth is located inside the earth, but not at the center of the Earth.
The moon orbits the Earth because it is closer and smaller than us.