by Tim Little <tim@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
Mar 9, 2008 at 10:49 PM
On 2008-03-09, Tux Wonder-Dog <wes.parish@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> So it will take more energy to move any given mass a lesser
> distance
It will take more energy to lift a given mass the *same* distance, but
could be equal (or less) to lift it a lesser distance. If you double
the gravity and halve the height, the energy is equal.
The rate of falloff of pressure is determined by the energy required
for air molecules to reach that altitude divided by their thermal
energy. Note that gravity cancels out. It has equal effect on both
rate of falloff of pressure and energy required to reach a given
altitude.
So unless the average thermal energy of molecules in the atmosphere is
comparable to the maximum energies achievable in chemical rockets
(i.e. the atmosphere is hotter than a blowtorch), getting above
essentially all of it will be achievable in a single stage.
- Tim
