The International Space Station orbits approximately 350 km above the Earth's surface. (The Earth's radius is 6,378 km.) Are the astronauts beyond the pull of Earth's gravity? Explain your reasoning.
No, they are not beyond the range of Earth's gravity. The Earth's pull is what keeps them in orbit.
No, the astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) are not beyond the pull of Earth's gravity. Despite being approximately 350 km above the Earth's surface, the influence of Earth's gravity extends far beyond that distance.
To explain this, let's consider the concept of gravity. Gravity is the force of attraction between two objects with mass. In this case, the Earth and the astronauts both have mass, so they exert a gravitational force on each other.
Gravity follows an inverse square law, which means its strength decreases as the distance between objects increases. However, it never truly reaches zero. So even though the ISS is relatively far from the Earth's surface, it is still within the range of Earth's gravitational pull.
In fact, it is gravity that keeps the ISS in orbit around the Earth. The ISS is essentially falling toward the Earth but continuously missing it due to its forward velocity. This results in a circular orbit around the Earth. If there were no gravity, the astronauts aboard the ISS would not be in orbit; they would instead move in a straight line away from the Earth.
Therefore, even though the astronauts on the ISS experience a sense of weightlessness due to the falling sensation in orbit, they are still influenced by Earth's gravity.