What will happen if the moon falls to the earth?
The moon in the night sky is so large compared to other stars that you may feel attracted to it when you stare at it. Kurzgesagt, a science-based YouTube channel, explains what happens when such a moon collides with the earth in a colorful animation movie.
Since all objects are attracted by universal gravitational force, it is natural to think that if the moon does not fall, there is a 'force opposite to the universal gravitational force generated between the earth and the earth.'
However, in reality, such a reverse force does not work on the moon. The real moon avoids collisions with the Earth by continuing to move horizontally with respect to the Earth.
Moving horizontally is similar to a ball launched by a baseball batter, but ...
The ball falls to the earth, but the moon does not.
What is the difference between the ball and the moon is 'speed'. If the ball has enough speed, it will go around the earth and return to its original position before it hits the ground. Furthermore, if there is no air resistance, you can even keep orbiting the earth forever without falling to the ground.
The moon is actually doing this movement. The moon continues to orbit the earth in 27 days at a speed of 3600 km / h.
By the way, what would happen if the moon were to fall to the earth?
The moon in the night sky doesn't look that big, but it's actually so huge that even with billions of rocket engines, the orbit doesn't change much.
So I'm going to cast the spell 'Slow down the moon'. As mentioned above, the reason why the moon does not fall to the earth is due to 'speed', so it is an attempt to slowly bring the moon closer to the earth by reducing the speed. This episode describes a thought experiment, 'What would happen if the moon slowed down by a spell fell to Earth in just one year?'
First of all, let's look at the first month of the year until the moon falls. For the first few days after casting the spell, scientists may be able to detect the difference, but most people shouldn't notice any change. However, there is a visible level of change in '
The moon raises and lowers the sea level at near positions and lowers the sea level at distant positions, creating a 'tide ebb and flow'. When averaging coastlines around the world, the difference in sea level between low tide and high tide is about 0.5 meters, but if the moon gradually approaches the earth, this difference will become even greater, 1 It is expected to reach a difference of 4.0 meters in a month. Therefore, the existing breakwaters are not high enough and the coastal cities will be flooded every day at high tide.
This inundation never ends, and the area continues to expand as the moon approaches, and seawater-covered areas continue to grow.
Next is about the second month after casting the spell. By the end of the second month, the distance between the Moon and the Earth will be two-thirds of the original, and the
As the tide level rises, existing ports will no longer be available, which will stop shipping by sea and partially disrupt food distribution.
Since 95% of the Internet is communicated by submarine cables, it seems that it has nothing to do with the sea, but the terminals connecting the submarine cables are affected.
Since the story so far is basically centered on the sea, it seems that you may think that 'damage is small if it is inland', but due to changes in the tide, the river flows backward and seawater infiltrates to the upstream area, and the surface of the earth and Contaminate the underground. In addition, the collapse of offshore oil platforms will lead to a shortage of petroleum products such as gasoline.
Survivors are forced to abandon supplies and flee, and some countries are beginning to ration. In urban areas, people aiming for abandoned supplies will appear, fishing for supplies at low tide and evacuating to skyscrapers at high tide.
Then to the third month. At this time, the moon's approach makes the moon's gravitational force too strong, leaving the satellite out of control.
In the 4th and 5th months, the distance between the moon and the earth will shrink from 100,000 km to 60,000 km. At high tide, the water level continues to rise at an accelerating rate, reaching 30 to 100 meters in just a few weeks.
Not only at high tide, but also at low tide, the situation is astonishing, with the ocean receding hundreds of kilometers and exposing the continental shelf like a vast desert.
The events so far are devastating in every respect, but the six months to the sixth month are just the 'introduction' to Apocalypse.
The sea is only 3 kilometers deep on average, so by the time we reach the sixth month, we will reach a point where the ebb and flow of the tide will not change anymore. Then, it is not that there is no change from here, but after that, the earth itself will be exposed to the influence of the gravitational pull of the moon.
In addition to the pressure exerted on the earth itself, billions of tons of water on the surface of the earth move back and forth over the crust plate, putting great stress on the crust and gradually increasing the number of earthquakes.
It's hard to imagine how big these quakes will be, but in any case, the quakes will continue to increase until the Earth collapses, just as children continue to jump on top of them until their beds break. It is thought to follow.
Earthquakes are not the only problem. Due to the gravitational pull of the moon, magma chambers inside the crust collapse, causing large eruptions that can change the climate at spots with huge volcanoes such as Chile, New Zealand, and Yellowstone National Park.
The moon that causes this situation is about the size of a small cloud, but it shines bright enough to show the night sky at dusk.
Approximately six months after the spell, the moon temporarily enters
Although the moon repeats its phases, its relative position with the earth does not change, so the tide disappears, and it is divided into areas where the high tide continues and areas where the low tide continues.
By the way, if the moon gets too close, the gravitational force of the moon will exceed the gravitational force of the earth, and you may think, 'Isn't it colliding with the moon and dying?' It's six times stronger, so that doesn't happen.
When the moon is close enough to the earth, the surface of the moon on the side closer to the earth is strongly pulled by the earth, and the moon transforms into an egg shape.
From the 8th to the 11th month after casting the spell, the apocalypse is finally over. Until now, the speed of ebb and flow of the tide has slowed down, but since the revolution speed of the moon exceeds the rotation speed of the earth, the ebb and flow of the tide will rather start to accelerate. Earthquakes and volcanic activity become more active on Earth, releasing large amounts of volcanic aerosols into the stratosphere and blocking the sun's rays.
As a result of the sun's rays being blocked, a large-scale cold phenomenon occurs so that snow can be seen even in the summer. Combined with acid rain from volcanic aerosols, no more plants can survive on Earth.
As the first anniversary approaches, the moon reaches the '
When the Roche limit is exceeded, the moon cannot withstand the
If anyone survived, the huge arches in the sky shimmer in the sunlight in the morning ...
At night, you can see the ring of moondust, which is not stardust, coloring the night sky.
However, it may be a short time to entertain your eyes. If a large amount of this moondust falls on the earth, the atmosphere may overheat due to frictional heat and the sea may boil.
It is possible that moondust and volcanic aerosols block the sun, causing a large-scale cold phenomenon that freezes most of the earth's surface.
It is not always the case that human beings will be extinct, and there is still the possibility that they can survive if they escape to the seabed by submarines or stay at the top of the mountain.
The reconstruction of civilization from such a situation will be an endless journey, but only the ring of moondust shining overhead should continue to watch over the surviving human beings.
Related Posts:
