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NASA: Calculation1

Eric Bergoust skis down identical hills on Earth and the moon. Due to the moon's lower gravity of 1/6 Earth's, his velocity on the moon is expected to be 1/6 of his Earth velocity. However, calculations show his moon velocity is actually 41% of his Earth velocity. His hang time on the moon is also longer at 2.4 times his hang time on Earth. This is because velocity and hang time are functions of the gravitational acceleration, not just its ratio between the two locations. The analysis makes simplifying assumptions about equal friction and ignoring air resistance that may affect real world results.

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171 views2 pages

NASA: Calculation1

Eric Bergoust skis down identical hills on Earth and the moon. Due to the moon's lower gravity of 1/6 Earth's, his velocity on the moon is expected to be 1/6 of his Earth velocity. However, calculations show his moon velocity is actually 41% of his Earth velocity. His hang time on the moon is also longer at 2.4 times his hang time on Earth. This is because velocity and hang time are functions of the gravitational acceleration, not just its ratio between the two locations. The analysis makes simplifying assumptions about equal friction and ignoring air resistance that may affect real world results.

Uploaded by

NASAdocuments
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Picture this: Eric Bergoust skis down a hill on Earth.

Next, he skis
down an identical hill on the moon—same slope, same starting point.
In both cases, gravity pulls him down the hill. The question: What is
his speed at the bottom, Earth vs. moon?

Lunar gravity is 1/6 as strong as Earth gravity. You might naturally suppose that
Bergoust’s velocity on the moon would be lower by that same ratio, 1/6 or 17%,
but that is wrong. In fact, his moon velocity will be (1/6)1/2 or 41% of his Earth
velocity. Here’s why:

At the beginning of his run, perched at the top of the hill, Bergoust’s potential
energy is mgh,

where m = the mass of the skier;


g = the acceleration due to gravity; and
h = the height of the hill.

He skis to the bottom, converting potential energy (mgh) to kinetic energy


(1/2mv2).

What is his velocity v? To find out, set potential energy equal to kinetic energy
and solve for v:

mgh = 1/2mv2

v = (2gh)1/2

Now we can compare his velocity on Earth (vE) to his velocity on the moon (vm):

vE = (2gEh)1/2 equation (1)


vm = (2gmh)1/2 equation (2)

Combining equations 1 and 2 we find

vm/vE = (gm/gE)1/2 = (1/6)1/2 = 0.41 equation (3)

So, the velocity at the bottom of the moon-hill is 41% the velocity at the
bottom on the Earth-hill. 70 km/hr on Earth becomes 28 km/hr on the
moon.

Next, we can calculate hang-time, Earth vs. moon.

According to Newton, the hang-time, t, for any ballistic trajectory is given by


equation (4)

t = 2vsin(θ)/g equation (4)


Let’s compare hang time on Earth (tE) vs. hang time on the moon (tm).

tE = 2vEsin(θ)/gE equation (5)


tm = 2vmsin(θ)/gm equation (6)

Combining equations 3, 5 and 6, we find

tm/tE = (vm/vE) (gE/gm) = 61/2 = 2.4

Hang time on the moon is 2.4 times that on Earth. 3 seconds on Earth
becomes 7.2 seconds on the moon.

Caveat emptor: The analysis, above, contains several simplifying assumptions:


(1) We assume that snow and moondust are equally frictionless surfaces, which
is wrong, especially for moondust, which is expected to be much more abrasive
than snow. The math is sound, however, if Bergoust uses super-slick frictionless
skis for his runs on the moon. (2) We ignore any push Bergoust gives himself at
the top of the hill. His velocity, the analysis asserts, is due entirely to the pull of
gravity. And (3) we ignore the effects of air resistance, which is fine on the airless
moon, but imprecise on Earth. Are these oversimplifications? Future lunar
Olympics will tell.

--Dr. Tony Phillips, Science@NASA

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