By newton's third law , we know that every action has an equal and opposite reaction .We move left when we push slightly on the right and move forward as we push backward. But how do rockets, satellites etc change their direction in the space as they have nothing to push on?
[Physics] Application of Newton’s third law
conservation-lawsmomentumnewtonian-mechanicsrocket-science
Best Answer
Crudely, just consider the burned rocket fuel that is ejected out of the back of the rocket due to chemical reactions. The rocket exerts a strong backward force on the burned rocket fuel. According to Newton's third law, required reaction is that the burned rocket fuel exerts an equal forward force on the rocket. This force accelerates the rocket forward.
Keep in mind that Newton's third law says nothing about pushing against something, the rocket does not need to push against "a medium" to accelerate forward.