What is the escape velocity from the Earth ?

Escape velocity is the speed that you have to have in order to 'escape' from the surface of a planet to some distance in space far from its surface, usually defined as 'infinity'. Here are the escape velocities for the different bodies in our solar system:

Body               Kilometers/sec          Miles/hour
.........................................................
Mercury                4.2
Venus                 10.3
Earth                 11.5
Mars                   5.0
Jupiter               61.0
Saturn                37.0
Uranus                22.0
Neptune               25.0
Pluto                  1.0 ?
Moon                   2.4
Sun                  617.7
.........................................................

Copyright 1997 Dr. Sten Odenwald
Return to Ask the Astronomer.