Why don't gas molecules in a room simply fall to the ground due to gravity?
Why don't gas molecules in a room simply fall to the ground due to gravity?
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1 Answer
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It's because gas molecules constantly move around at super high speeds. They randomly bump into each other constantly. Gravity does pull on them. The pulling effect is not much, however. When we consider the distance from the floor to the ceiling, gravity's pull is overcome by the molecular kinetic energy. So they just spread out and move from one place to another. They can't settle down.
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