The Earth’s gravity is strong enough to keep The Moon, an immense celestial body, from flying off into space. It is also weak enough to allow us to jump and throw things in the air. How does this work?

Question

Similarly, why does The Moon’s gravity affect the tides but won’t, for example, cause a paperclip to slide across a desk?

In: Physics

Answer 1

For the water and paperclip comparison water is a liquid and so it can flow in response to the pull while a paperclip has to have its entire mass moved against the friction of the desk.

A comparison would be putting water and a paperclip on a slightly rough surface and tilting it slightly. The water flows off but the clip stays in place.