Why do satellites remain in orbit while the force of gravity pulls downward on them?
What will be an ideal response?
They remain in orbit because the force of gravity pulls perpendicular to the motion of the satellite. With no component of force in the direction of motion, no change in speed occurs—only a change in direction.
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In the diagram below, the importance of the falling precipitation at "A" for the global carbon cycle is that
A) the falling rain makes carbon in the atmosphere more inert, giving it much greater potential to act as a greenhouse gas and warm the Earth.
B) the falling rain brings CaCO3 which was trapped in the atmosphere to the surface, cooling the Earth.
C) the falling rain lubricates the Earth's surface, making crustal deformation more likely, which would bring carbon stored in the lithosphere back up to the atmosphere, warming the Earth.
D) CO2 combines with water to form H2CO3, removing carbon from the atmosphere and cooling the Earth.
The length of time preserved in Grand Canyon rocks is about:a
10,000 years. b. 100,000 years. c. 1 million years. d. 1 billion years. e. 10 billion years
The Mohorovicic discontinuity represents
A) the boundary between inner and outer cores B) the boundary between mantle and crust C) the boundary between lithosphere and hydrosphere D) the boundary between outer core and mantle
The flat stable interior of a continent within a craton is called a ____.
a. shield b. continental slope c. abyssal plain d. mountain belt e. continental rise