A model shows that the moon has grown twice its size, yet it remains in the same place. explain how this would impact the gravity between Earth and moon.

Answer 1

If the moon has grown twice its size while remaining in the same place, it means that its mass has increased. According to Newton's law of universal gravitation, the force of gravity between two objects is directly proportional to their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

In this scenario, as the moon's mass has increased, the force of gravity between the Earth and the moon would also increase. This would result in a stronger gravitational pull between the two celestial bodies. Consequently, the tides on Earth would be more pronounced and potentially higher due to the increased gravitational force exerted by the larger moon.

Additionally, the increased gravitational force would affect various other phenomena such as the Earth's rotation and orbits of other satellites. The altered gravitational pull could lead to changes in the Earth's rotational speed or the stability of satellite orbits around the planet.

However, it's important to note that this scenario is purely hypothetical as the moon growing twice its size while remaining in the same place is not possible in reality.