What is escape speed?

University Physics Volume 1
18th Edition
ISBN:9781938168277
Author:William Moebs, Samuel J. Ling, Jeff Sanny
Publisher:William Moebs, Samuel J. Ling, Jeff Sanny
Chapter13: Gravitation
Section: Chapter Questions
Problem 29P: Find the escape speed of a projectile from the surface of Mars.
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What is escape speed?

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When a body is thwon upward away from the surface of the earth, it goes upto a maximum height and then returns back to the surface of the earth. This happens because Earth attracts everybody present in its gravitational field with a force known as force of gravity. 

But if we have to throw a body, which does not return back to the surface of the earth, then we must have to provide it enough kinetic energy such that it can escape the earth's gravitational field and escape into space.

Hence, the velocity required to give an object such that when it is thrown away from the surface of the earth, it ecapes from the earth's gravittional field and never returns back under the influence of the force due to gravity of the earth, is known as Escape velocity. 

In other words, the velocity required to give an object in order it to escape from the earth's gravitational field and go into space without returning back is known as Escape velocity. For earth, escape velocity is 11.2 km/s. Means if an object would be thrown with such a velocity it would never return back to the surface of the earth.

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