The picture below shows the Apollo spacecraft that took astronauts to the Moon in 1969. The spacecraft weighed 6.1 million pounds, and its motors produced 7.5 million pounds of thrust. Explain how the spacecraft left the surface of the earth.
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Responses
The spacecraft produced a downward force of thrust that was less than the downward force of gravity.
The spacecraft produced a downward force of thrust that was equal to the downward force of gravity.
The spacecraft produced an upward force of thrust that was greater than the downward force of gravity.
The spacecraft produced an upward force of thrust that was equal to the downward force of gravity.
The spacecraft produced an upward force of thrust that was greater than the downward force of gravity. This allowed the spacecraft to overcome the force of gravity and leave the surface of the earth. The 7.5 million pounds of thrust produced by the motors pushed the spacecraft upward, and as it gained altitude, the force of gravity decreased. Once the spacecraft reached a certain altitude and speed, it was able to enter into orbit around the earth or continue on its journey to the moon.
The spacecraft produced an upward force of thrust that was greater than the downward force of gravity.
To leave the surface of the Earth, the Apollo spacecraft used its powerful motors to generate 7.5 million pounds of thrust. This upward force of thrust was greater than the downward force of gravity, which allowed the spacecraft to overcome the force pulling it towards the Earth. As a result, the spacecraft was able to lift off and leave the Earth's surface.
The correct answer is: The spacecraft produced an upward force of thrust that was greater than the downward force of gravity.
To explain how the spacecraft left the surface of the earth, we need to understand Newton's Third Law of Motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. In this case, the action is the downward force of gravity pulling the spacecraft towards the surface of the earth.
The spacecraft leaves the surface of the earth by exerting an upward force of thrust that is greater than the downward force of gravity. The motors of the Apollo spacecraft produced 7.5 million pounds of thrust, which means they generated a force pushing the spacecraft upward. This upward force is greater than the downward pull of gravity, which allowed the spacecraft to overcome the force of gravity and leave the surface of the earth.
By producing more upward thrust than the force of gravity, the spacecraft was able to achieve enough acceleration to overcome the pull of the earth's gravity and enter into space. This is known as achieving escape velocity. Once the spacecraft reached this velocity, it was able to continue its journey towards the moon.
It's important to note that if the spacecraft had produced a downward force of thrust equal to the force of gravity, it would have remained stationary on the surface of the earth. Similarly, if the spacecraft had produced a downward force of thrust less than the force of gravity, it would have been unable to leave the surface and would have fallen back to earth. Therefore, it was necessary for the spacecraft to produce an upward force of thrust greater than the force of gravity to successfully leave the surface of the earth.