In a futuristic scenario, you are assigned the mission of making inoperative an

Question

In a futuristic scenario, you are assigned the mission of making inoperative an enemy satellite that is in a circular orbit around Earth. You know you cannot destroy the satellite, as it is well protected against attack. But you can try to knock it out of its orbit so it will fly away and never return. What is the minimum amount of work applied to the satellite that is required to accomplish that? The satellite's mass and altitude are 9.67*10^2 kg and 2.31*10^2 km. Earth's mass and radius are 5.98*10^24 kg and 6.37*10^3 km.

Please show your work for points and convert the final answer to meters.

Explanation / Answer

Find the total energy of the satellite in it's orbit .. Et = KE + GPE

Orbit radius .. R = 6.37*10^6m + 2.31*10^5m .. R = 6.60*10^6m

KE = gravitational attraction provides the centripetal force (satellite mass m)
G.Me.m / R

Related Questions

Navigate

• Browse (All)
• Browse I
• Subjects

Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.