you are viewing a single comment's thread.

view the rest of the comments →

[–]roc 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

The moon doesn't fall apart because it has enough mass to create significant gravity. At the surface of the moon the gravitational acceleration is 1/6 of Earth, which means that pieces of the Moon cannot just drift away into space. Gases however can easily escape with 1/6 gravity, which is why the Moon has no atmosphere.

[–]wizzwizz4[S] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Why do gases drift away, but stones not? Doesn't everything fall down?

[–]roc 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Because molecules in a gas all move with some speed. This speed can be high enough to a body's gravity. Rocks on the other hand do not move around but lie in one place.

[–]wizzwizz4[S] 0 insightful - 1 fun0 insightful - 0 fun1 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Great explanation! You're missing the word "escape", though.