Chapter 8, Problem 8.3P

The space shuttle releases a 470-kg communications satellite while in an orbit 280 km above the surface of the Earth. A rocket engine on the satellite boosts it into a geosynchronous orbit, which is an orbit in which the satellite stays directly over a single location on the Earth. How much energy does the engine have to provide?

the potential energy function U(r) of a projectile, plotted outward from the surface of a planet of radius Rs. If the projectile is launched radially outward from the surface with a mechanical energy of2.0 * 10^9 J, what are (a) its kinetic energy at radius r = 1.25Rs and (b) its turning point (see Module 8-3) in terms of Rs?

What are (a) the speed and (b) the period of a 220 kg satellite in an approximately circular orbit 640 km above the surface of Earth? Suppose the satellite loses mechanical energy at the average rate of 1.4 * 105 J per orbital revolution. Adopting the reasonable approximation that the satellite’s orbit becomes a “circle of slowly diminishing radius,” determine the satellite’s (c) altitude, (d) speed, and (e) period at the end of its 1500th revolution. (f ) What is the magnitude of the average retarding force on the satellite? Is angular momentum around Earth’s center conserved for (g) the satellite and (h) the satellite–Earth system (assuming that system is isolated)?

Consider the following pairs of objects with varying masses and separation distances. Which of these pairs has the largest gravitational potential energy?     (a) 1  (b) 2  (c) 3  (d) 4

If the mass and radius of Mars are 6.39 × 1023 kg and 3.4 × 106 m, respectively, what is the escape velocity needed for a spaceship of mass 25,000 kg to escape the gravitational potential well of Mars?  A) 1,200 m/s B). 8,658 m/s C). 7,270 m/s D). 5,022 m/s

As you have learnt in the text, a geostationary satellite orbits the earth at a height of nearly 36,000 km from the surface of the earth. What is the potential due to earth’s gravity at the site of this satellite ? (Take the potential energy at infinity to be zero). Mass of the earth = 6.0×1024 kg, radius = 6400 km

Calculate the gravitational constant g, in SI units, for alocation on the surface of the sun.

A satellite is in a circular low Earth orbit at an altitude of 356 km above the equator's surface. For Earth's radius at the equator, use RE, eq = 6.38 ✕ 106 m. Assuming only the force of Earth's gravity acts on the satellite, determine the smallest required change in the satellite's speed if it is to escape Earth's gravity and never return.

A satellite of mass  243kg orbits the Earth at a constant speed in a circular orbit. The work done by the Earth on the satellite is a. negative. b. zero. c.directed towards the centre of the orbit. d. [None of the others.] e. positive. f.directed along a tangent to the orbit.