Variable-mass system events. The following derivation is for a body that is gaining mass (accretion). A body of time-varying mass "m" moves at a velocity v at an initial time "t". In the same instant, a particle of mass dm moves with velocity u. The initial momentum can be written as Now at a time "t" + d"t", let both the main body and the particle accrete into a body of velocity v + dv. Thus the new momentum of the system can be written as Since d"m"dv is the product of two small values, it can be ignored, meaning during d"t"
Escape velocity "r" from the center of mass of the planet, whose mass is "M". Its initial speed is equal to its escape velocity, formula_6. At its final state, "f", it will be an infinite distance away from the planet, and its speed will be negligibly small and assumed to be 0. Kinetic energy "K" and gravitational potential energy "U" are the only types of energy that we will deal with, so by the conservation of energy, "K" = 0 because final velocity is zero, and "U" = 0 because its final distance is infinity, so where μ is the standard gravitational