Answer: Gravity is the force that keeps planets in orbit around the Sun. Gravity alone holds us to Earth's surface.
Planets have measurable properties, such as size, mass, density, and composition. A planet's size and mass determines its gravitational pull.
A planet's mass and size determines how strong its gravitational pull is.
Models can help us experiment with the motions of objects in space, which are determined by the gravitational pull between them.
Explanation:
-- We're going to be talking about the satellite's speed.
"Velocity" would include its direction at any instant, and
in a circular orbit, that's constantly changing.
-- The mass of the satellite makes no difference.
Since the planet's radius is 3.95 x 10⁵m and the satellite is
orbiting 4.2 x 10⁶m above the surface, the radius of the
orbital path itself is
(3.95 x 10⁵m) + (4.2 x 10⁶m)
= (3.95 x 10⁵m) + (42 x 10⁵m)
= 45.95 x 10⁵ m
The circumference of the orbit is (2 π R) = 91.9 π x 10⁵ m.
The bird completes a revolution every 2.0 hours,
so its speed in orbit is
(91.9 π x 10⁵ m) / 2 hr
= 45.95 π x 10⁵ m/hr x (1 hr / 3,600 sec)
= 0.04 x 10⁵ m/sec
= 4 x 10³ m/sec
(4 kilometers per second)
