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Which astronaut dropped a hammer and falcon feather while on the moon?
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
Apollo 15 astronaut Dave Scott dropped the hammer and feather to show that since there is no air friction on the moon, and the acceleration of an object by gravity does not depend on the mass of the object.
The above experiment is supposed to prove the equivalence principle which states that the acceleration an object feels due to gravity does not depend on its mass, density, composition, colour or shape.
"Both will hit the moon at the same time?"
Answer:
If you drop a hammer and a feather from the same height on earth, the hammer will hit the ground first as the feather is slowed down drastically by air resistance.
But on the moon, because it is a vacuum, and since the acceleration of an object is the same as the gravity i.e. a = g and the mass is not in the equation, all objects will have the same acceleration and hence the hammer should fall to the surface of moon at the same time as the feather but:
"Both will hit the moon at the same time as believed by most scientists?"
This may not be absolutely true since every object has its own gravity which is greater if its mass is greater. So the hammer has a gravity much greater than that of the feather. Therefore the combined gravity of the hammer and that of the moon (which pulls the hammer and moon towards each other) is greater than that of the feather and the moon.
As such the hammer should collide with the moon marginally earlier than that between the feather and the moon, though this difference is so minute that we assume that the collisions occur simultaneously.
However, if the hammer and feather are dropped together, then as the hammer's gravity pulls the moon towards itself, it also pull the moon towards the feather and as such the lucky feather may get a free ride and hits the moon at the same time as the hammer.
To be fair, the experiment should be done dropping the objects individually e.g. feather first, then the hammer and then see whether the times taken are the same or not.
All the above are valid only on the assumption that the centre of gravity is the part that hits the moon but since this is not necessarily true, we also have to take into account which part of the hammer or feather is nearest to the moon before the two objects were released (assuming that the centre of gravity of both objects are at the same level on release) !
The real answer is that there is not enough data for us to know which will hit the moon first !
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
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What would happen if you dropped a hammer and a feather here on earth?
The feather would reach the earth first dumb@$$
What would happen if your in space with no atmosphere and you dropped a feather and a hammer?
They would both float if you had no gravity.
Who dropped the feather and hammer in Apollo 11?
It was Neil Armstrong , to find out which object would land faster on the moon.
What will strike the surface of the moon first a hammer or a feather?
Both the hammer and the feather will hit the lunar surface simultaneously. In the absence of any atmosphere, there is no air resistance to slow down the feather. Therefore, in a vacuum, all objects fall at the same rate regardless of their mass. This was famously demonstrated during the Apollo 15 mission in 1971 by astronaut David Scott, who dropped a hammer and a feather on the moon's surface and observed them falling together.
Why would a feather and hammer dropped at the same time on moon land together?
"Both will hit the moon at the same time?" Not Absolutely True.This may not be absolutely true since every object has its own gravity which is greater if its mass is greater. So the hammer has a gravity much greater than that of the feather. Therefore the combined gravity of the hammer and that of the moon (which pulls the hammer and moon towards each other) is greater than that of the feather and the moon.As such the hammer should collide with the moon marginally earlier than that between the feather and the moon, though this difference is so minute that we assume that the collisions occur simultaneously.However, if the hammer and feather are dropped together, then as the hammer's gravity pulls the moon towards itself, it also pull the moon towards the feather and as such the lucky feather may get a free ride and hits the moon at the same time as the hammer.But even with this help, the feather will still take a slightly longer time to collide with the moon as the gravity from the hammer will cause the flight path of the feather to curve towards the hammer and as such takes a longer path and hence a longer time to hit the moon.To be fair, the experiment should be done dropping the feather first, then the hammer and then see the different times taken.All the above are valid only on the assumption that the centre of gravity is the part that hits the moon but since this is not true, we also have to take into account which part of the hammer or feather is nearest to the moon before the two objects were released !So, the real answer is that there is not enough data for us to know which will hit the moon first !
What would happen if you dropped a hammer and a feather here on earth?
The feather would reach the earth first dumb@$$
In 1971 who dropped the hammer and feather on the moon to seen which would land first?
Dave Scott.
What would happen if your in space with no atmosphere and you dropped a feather and a hammer?
They would both float if you had no gravity.
Who dropped the feather and hammer in Apollo 11?
It was Neil Armstrong , to find out which object would land faster on the moon.
What falls faster when dropped on the moon a hammer or a feather?
If they are dropped from the same height, they will fall at equal velocities because there is no air resistance and their accelerations by gravity are equal.
What will strike the surface of the moon first a hammer or a feather?
Both the hammer and the feather will hit the lunar surface simultaneously. In the absence of any atmosphere, there is no air resistance to slow down the feather. Therefore, in a vacuum, all objects fall at the same rate regardless of their mass. This was famously demonstrated during the Apollo 15 mission in 1971 by astronaut David Scott, who dropped a hammer and a feather on the moon's surface and observed them falling together.
Why does a coin and a feather fall with different accelerations in the presence of air?
The structure of the feather makes it catch the air and fall more slowly than the coin. Refer to the related link for the Apollo 15 mission to the moon, which has no atmosphere, in which an astronaut drops a hammer and a feather at the same time.
Why would a feather and hammer dropped at the same time on moon land together?
"Both will hit the moon at the same time?" Not Absolutely True.This may not be absolutely true since every object has its own gravity which is greater if its mass is greater. So the hammer has a gravity much greater than that of the feather. Therefore the combined gravity of the hammer and that of the moon (which pulls the hammer and moon towards each other) is greater than that of the feather and the moon.As such the hammer should collide with the moon marginally earlier than that between the feather and the moon, though this difference is so minute that we assume that the collisions occur simultaneously.However, if the hammer and feather are dropped together, then as the hammer's gravity pulls the moon towards itself, it also pull the moon towards the feather and as such the lucky feather may get a free ride and hits the moon at the same time as the hammer.But even with this help, the feather will still take a slightly longer time to collide with the moon as the gravity from the hammer will cause the flight path of the feather to curve towards the hammer and as such takes a longer path and hence a longer time to hit the moon.To be fair, the experiment should be done dropping the feather first, then the hammer and then see the different times taken.All the above are valid only on the assumption that the centre of gravity is the part that hits the moon but since this is not true, we also have to take into account which part of the hammer or feather is nearest to the moon before the two objects were released !So, the real answer is that there is not enough data for us to know which will hit the moon first !
Which has more inertia hammer or feather?
A hammer would hit the ground first because a hammer is heavier
What would happen if you droped a hammer and a feather on the Moon?
What would happen if you dropped a hammer and a feather on the earth and on the moon? The above experiment is supposed to prove the equivalence principle which states that the acceleration an object feels due to gravity does not depend on its mass, density, composition, colour or shape.Answer:If you drop a hammer and a feather from the same height on earth, the hammer will hit the ground first as the feather is slowed down drastically by air resistance.But on the moon, because it is a vacuum, and since the acceleration of an object is the same as the gravity i.e. a = g and the mass is not in the equation, all objects will have the same acceleration and hence the hammer should fall to the surface of moon at the same time as the feather but:"Both will hit the moon at the same time as believed by most scientists?"This may not be absolutely true since every object has its own gravity which is greater if its mass is greater. So the hammer has a gravity much greater than that of the feather. Therefore the combined gravity of the hammer and that of the moon (which pulls the hammer and moon towards each other) is greater than that of the feather and the moon.As such the hammer should collide with the moon marginally earlier than that between the feather and the moon, though this difference is so minute that we assume that the collisions occur simultaneously.However, if the hammer and feather are dropped together, then as the hammer's gravity pulls the moon towards itself, it also pull the moon towards the feather and as such the lucky feather may get a free ride and hits the moon at the same time as the hammer.To be fair, the experiment should be done dropping the objects individually e.g. feather first, then the hammer and then see whether the times taken are the same or not.All the above are valid only on the assumption that the centre of gravity is the part that hits the moon but since this is not necessarily true, we also have to take into account which part of the hammer or feather is nearest to the moon before the two objects were released (assuming that the centre of gravity of both objects are at the same level on release) !The real answer is that there is not enough data for us to know which will hit the moon first !The famous experiment by Astronaut Dave Scott on the moon is not very precise.Dr HW Looi
Can a quarter and a feather fall at the same speed?
theoritically yes. if they are placed in a vacuum packed room with no air, just empty space, they can fall at the same rate. if they fell in air, the aerodynamics wouldn't equal out, so the quarter would fall faster.
What are some examples of air resistance and gravitational force?
1. when you drop a feather and a hammer the feather falls slower than the hammer
