Would it be possible to punch someone into space?
If two incredibly strong incredibly indestructible characters were fighting on earth could one punch the other one into space? By space I am assuming that we at sea level and are trying to escape the earth's gravity well to guarantee the victim does not return to the planet.
We are assuming that strength is infinite and are completely indestructible, but there are some considerations. I would like to have a habitable planet left afterwards. Overall it would be good to know how much collateral damage this could cause.
Let's assume the character cannot magically brace themselves against a point in space like Superman, and there would be an equal and opposite reaction, that may also cause collateral damage.
Besides the superpowers these characters have weight and shape similar to normal humans. We can also assume they are perfectly rigid objects and that the punch is perfectly elastic if this makes life easier.
Also if punching is too destructive, could a throw that gives a little more time for acceleration reduce the damage caused to the surroundings?
EDIT: I cannot consider accepting the current answer
the escape velocity at 12km above sea level where the atmosphere ends is still over 11000 m/s
An object traveling those 12 km from sea level at 11,000 m/s would be down to under 200 m/s due to air resistance after a quick calculation here http://www.jayandwanda.com/tt/ballspeed_calc1.html . This means the answer does not remotely consider putting in enough energy
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1 answer
On Earth, escape velocity is about 11 km/s, or 11,000 m/s. Assuming the opponent weighs around 70 kg (maybe more), that's a kinetic energy of at least $$\text{KE}=\frac{1}{2}mv^2=\frac{1}{2}\cdot70\cdot(11000)^2=4.235\times10^9\text{ Joules}$$ Furthermore, the opponent would have a momentum of $$p=mv=(70)\cdot11000=770000\text{ N s}$$ Even if the punch is given in one second, that's still a force applied of 770,000 Newtons. For comparison, the force of a 70 kg human on Earth is about 700 Newtons. This person would be subjected to a force (and thus an acceleration) 1000 times that.
They will be crushed like a soft peanut. So no, they will not reach space today. Furthermore, the punch would impart the same amount of momentum to the puncher, meaning that they would be subjected to the same amount of force.
. . . but you've stated that they are both indestructible. So neither one will be crushed like a soft peanut.
So, let's assume that the puncher does in fact deliver a force of 770,000 Newtons to the opponent. A force should then act on the puncher, of the same magnitude and opposite direction.
Let's look at a diagram here. Assume the opponent is launched at an angle $\theta$ from the ground:
The force on him is $F$, and so the force on the puncher is $-F$. The vertical component of this force is $-F\sin\theta$. Let's assume that $\theta=90^\circ$, i.e. the opponent goes straight up. We see then that the vertical component of the force has a magnitude of 770,000 Newtons. Assuming the person has the same mass as the opponent, he will then have a kinetic energy of $4.235\times10^9\text{ Joules}$, the equivalent of roughly one ton of TNT. This will be aimed directly at the ground.
That's like aiming two Tomahawk missiles at one spot ($\theta=30^\circ$ would be as much as one). One is bad enough. Both opponents may walk away unharmed, but there should be a fairly large crater.
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