Question

What might happen to the objects orbiting the Sun if the gravity of the Sun was decreased by half?

All objects that orbit the Sun would be release from the Sun's gravitational pull, and they would all drift off into open space.

The objects closest to the Sun would stay in orbit around the Sun, though possibly in a different path or distance from the Sun. While the objects further away from the Sun would drift off in a straight line into open space.

Objects further away from the Sun would stay in an elliptical orbit. The objects closer to the Sun would lose their orbit and drift in a straight line out into space.

All objects that orbit the Sun would be pulled in closer to the Sun to make up the difference in the new gravitational pull

Answer 1

If the gravity of the Sun were to decrease by half, the effects on the objects orbiting the Sun would be significant and would generally align more closely with the first scenario you've listed. Here's a breakdown of what would likely happen:

1. **Loss of Gravitational Pull**: The gravitational force that the Sun exerts on all objects in its vicinity would be halved. According to Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation, gravitational attraction is directly proportional to the mass of the objects and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. Therefore, a decrease in the Sun's mass (or gravity) would result in less attraction for all orbiting bodies.

2. **Immediate Effects on Orbits**: Objects that are currently in stable orbits would no longer have sufficient gravitational force to maintain those orbits. This includes planets, asteroids, comets, and other celestial bodies. Most would cease to follow elliptical paths and would instead move in a straight line, tangential to their current orbital path, due to the inertia of their current motion.

3. **Different Outcomes Depending on Distance**: While this would apply broadly, there could be variations based on the specific dynamics of those orbits. Closer objects may experience more immediate alterations in their orbits, potentially losing them faster than those further away. However, eventually, all orbiting objects would drift away unless they were somehow acted upon by other forces.

4. **Overall Drift Into Space**: Without the Sun's gravitational influence, all objects that were previously in orbit would begin to drift out into space. They would no longer be contained within the solar system's gravitational bounds and would effectively exit their orbits into space.

In summary, the most accurate scenario reflecting the consequence of halving the Sun's gravitational pull would be that all objects that orbit the Sun would be released from the Sun's gravitational influence and would drift away into open space, rather than maintaining new orbits or being pulled closer to the Sun.