It is a common misconception that a rocket's exhaust pushes against the ground or the surrounding air to move the rocket forward. What does the source say about where a rocket's thrust is actually greatest?

1. The source directly names this idea, that rocket exhaust pushes on the ground, as a common misconception. 2. Thrust actually comes from the reaction force of the ejected exhaust gases on the rocket itself, following Newton's third law. 3. A rocket's thrust is actually greater in outer space than in the atmosphere or on the launch pad, since gases are easier to expel into a vacuum. 4. This rules out the ground and the atmosphere as the locations of maximum thrust, and shows thrust is not constant everywhere the rocket travels. _Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 8 "Linear Momentum and Collisions", section 8.7 Introduction to Rocket Propulsion_