As a research physicist, you have been called in to provide technical assistance

Question

As a research physicist, you have been called in to provide technical assistance to a science fiction film crew. The film plot centers on the investigation of a mysterious object found near a UFO crash site. The object is spherical and roughly 25.3 cm in diameter. According to the script, when scientists place a test instrument near the object, it registers an electric field of magnitude 1.730 times 10^5 N/C at a distance of 37.5 cm from its surface. Furthermore, they claim that the electric field strength is fairly constant at this distance from the surface. In the script, the scientists claim that such a charge is so enormous that the object must be extraterrestial! Calculate the charge on the object according to the specifications listed in the script. (Enter only a positive value.) Choose one of the following suggestions you would offer the script writers. The charge on the object is not unusual. You need a much larger E-field written in the script. The charge on the object is not unusual. You need a much smaller E-field written The charge on the object is truly fantastic, lending credence to the notion that the object is extraterrestial.

Explanation / Answer

electric field strength at a distance r from center of sphere

E = k*Q/r^2

r = distance from the center of the sphere = R+h

R = radius of sphere = 25.3/2 = 12.65 cm = 0.1265 m

h = 37.5 cm = 0.375 m

E = 1.73*10^5 N/C

1.73*10^5 = 9*10^9*Q/(0.1265+0.375)^2

Q = 4.83*10^-6 C

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OPTION C

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