Rocket Propulsion, Classical Relativity, and the Oberth Effect

• Philip Rodriguez Blanco ^[1] ; Carl E. Mungan ^[2]
  1. [1] Grossmont College

     Grossmont College

     Estados Unidos

     
  2. [2] Naval Academy

     Naval Academy

     Turquía

     
• Localización: The Physics Teacher, ISSN 0031-921X, Vol. 57, Nº. 7, 2019, págs. 439-441
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • The role of work and mechanical energy in classical relativity has been a subject of renewed interest in this publication.1–4 Here we present a problem that illustrates the relationship between impulse and kinetic energy for a rocket-powered object that can also change its gravitational potential energy. The same introductory physics principles lead to a remarkable result when applied to the mechanics of spaceflight—the Oberth effect—whereby a small impulse can cause a large change in a rocket’s orbital energy without violating any conservation laws.