Chef RatApr 29, 2024

If we took material like rock from space and got it back to Earth enough times, would Earth grow as a planet?

https://sh.itjust.works/post/18544812

If we took material like rock from space and got it back to Earth enough times, would Earth grow as a planet? - sh.itjust.works

As the title says. I’m actually thinking about this hard with my friends because everything that’s produced on Earth stays on Earth so it doesn’t change size, but what if it’s not from Earth but it stays on Earth? [https://sh.itjust.works/pictrs/image/4b10eeca-d3fc-4aca-beff-8d9cb61b303a.png]

Show threadtobogganablazeApr 29, 2024

I mean yeah. If you add stuff to a ball of stuff it get’s bigger.

Currently Earth is actually losing mass around 55.000 tones of mass per year. (100.000 tons loss due to air escaping to space but we gaing around 45.000 tons in dust and meteorties falling on earth).

Show threadccunningApr 29, 2024
If “energy equals mass”, shouldn’t we be gaining mass from the sun too 🤔
Show threadgroetApr 29, 2024

energy equals mass

That doesn’t mean energy has a weight.

It means it is physically possible to transition energy to mass and vice versa. Sunlight hitting the earth does not add any weight.

Also, earth radiates heat out to space. At a rate of (aaaaaaaaalmost, because of the greenhouse effect) 100% of the energy we get from the sun. If it didn’t, earth would be a few million degrees hot by now…

Show threadccunning

Oooh…Good point. And now I have conflicting responses.

This one makes the most intuitive sense to me but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Apr 29, 2024 at 4:02pmWeb
Show threadmexicancartelApr 29, 2024

One more thing to connect both responses.

Energy itself doesn’t have mass. Mass is interchangeable. But we do gain mass by a very kittle amount when it is stored (by plants or solar panels you know). So both answers checks out. Mass can be converted to large amount of energy and large amount of energh can be converted to little amount of mass.