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August 25, 2009 04:20 AM
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No the Mass is not critical. Even 1/3rd of the Earth is heavy enough to create sufficient gravitational force to keep an ocean there.
The atmosphere should be fine. What could happen would be a change of trajectory due to the loss of mass, and then if the Earth goes too far away from the sun then everything would basically freeze up and we would die. If it came to close to the sun the earth would become extremely hot.
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Two major things contribute to this: the mass of the planet and the thermal environment. The mass of the earth determines the escape velocity (how fast you have to go to break free of its gravity). The temperature due to our proximity to the sun determines the thermal distribution (and by relation, the speed) of different gas molecules. If the average thermal velocity of a gas is in excess of the escape velocity of a planet, then we'll see most of that gas eventually escape. This is one of the reasons you don't see a ton of hydrogen gas or helium gas in earth's atmosphere.
Source(s):
http://www.astronomynotes.com/solarsys/s3.htm
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If the earth's mass was 1/3 its current mass would the atmosphere and oceans dry up?
Is mass critical in maintaining an ocean?
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| August 25, 2009 05:33 AM |
The atmosphere should be fine. What could happen would be a change of trajectory due to the loss of mass, and then if the Earth goes too far away from the sun then everything would basically freeze up and we would die. If it came to close to the sun the earth would become extremely hot.
Cheers!
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Other Answers (1)
August 28, 2009 04:30 AM
The oceans would probably not disappear, but the composition of the atmosphere would be somewhat different. Two major things contribute to this: the mass of the planet and the thermal environment. The mass of the earth determines the escape velocity (how fast you have to go to break free of its gravity). The temperature due to our proximity to the sun determines the thermal distribution (and by relation, the speed) of different gas molecules. If the average thermal velocity of a gas is in excess of the escape velocity of a planet, then we'll see most of that gas eventually escape. This is one of the reasons you don't see a ton of hydrogen gas or helium gas in earth's atmosphere.
Source(s):
http://www.astronomynotes.com/solarsys/s3.htm
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