A satellite, placed into the Earth's orbit to investigate the ionosphere, had the following orbit parameters: perigee, 461 km; apogee, 2317 km (both distances above the Earth's surface); period, 112.7 min. Find the ratio vp/va of the speed at perigee to that at apogee.
2007-02-12 16:37:59 · 3 answers · asked by Victoroza 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
This is solved by conservation of angular momentum. You will need to figure the orbital parameters with respect to the earth's center; use the equatorial radius of 6378.137 km. Since angular momentum is conserved, the ratio of the geocentric radii will answer the problem. You do not need to use the period to solve the problem -- it's a red herring.
2007-02-12 16:48:17 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The second answerer is correct - the speed must be inversely proportional to the distance from the center of the Earth. You can attribute it to conservation of angular momentum, or to Kepler's Second Law, which is really the same thing.
2007-02-13 01:43:25 · answer #2 · answered by injanier 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
me too i have Mr. Lynch who do u have?
2007-02-13 00:41:01 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋