Originally Posted by nattoyaki:
“Maths and science are not my forte.
If space is a vacuum then how do rockets propel? What are they thrusting against?”
They don't need to "push against" anything (although you could argue that they're pushing against their own exhaust) Rockets work by "throwing" relatively small amounts of marerial backwards at speed: because the rocket has to "push" this material backwards, the material also pushes the rocket forwards.
Originally Posted by
nattoyaki:
“Also, is faster than light possible?
I'd be grateful for answers from science bods
”
Honest answer: nobody really knows. But, all the evidence so far suggests that it isn't. There might be ways round that evidence, but all result in the laws of physics being rather different from how the evidence suggests they are. So, most likely, no.