Wouldn’t an equal and opposite be exerted on your hand, thus canceling out the force and having no net change on the ball?
Noticeably different from a rocket, where propelled material is the force that drives the rocket forward.
I used to remember the answer to this question, but my physics is kinda fuzzy.
In: Physics
You don’t have to be in space for your logic. The 3rd Law applies on Earth too.
Anyway, you have to remember the forces are acting on DIFFERENT objects. You push on the ball, and the ball pushes on you with an equal and opposite force. If the force on the ball is greater than any other friction forces, then there will be a net force on the ball and it will accelerate. Same for the force on you. However, you are more massive than the ball, so the equal forces accelerate the ball and you a different amount.
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