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What is orbital velocity?

Question

What is orbital velocity?

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Solution

Orbital velocity is the minimum velocity an object must have in order to orbit a particular planet or other body. It is calculated using the mass of the planet or body, the gravitational constant, and the radius of the orbit.

Here are the steps to calculate it:

  1. Identify the mass of the planet or body being orbited. This is usually given in kilograms (kg).

  2. Identify the radius of the orbit. This is the distance from the center of the planet or body to the object in orbit. This is usually given in meters (m).

  3. Use the gravitational constant (G), which is approximately 6.674 x 10^-11 N(m/kg)^2.

  4. Plug these values into the formula for orbital velocity, which is V = sqrt(GM/r), where V is the orbital velocity, G is the gravitational constant, M is the mass of the planet or body, and r is the radius of the orbit.

  5. Solve for V. This will give you the orbital velocity in meters per second (m/s).

Remember, this is the minimum velocity needed for an object to maintain its orbit without propulsion. If the object goes any slower, it will fall out of orbit. If it goes any faster, it will escape the orbit.

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The earth’s orbit about the sun is almost a circle. The average orbital radius for the earth is 1.496 x 10^11 m. Its linear speed in its orbit is _____ m/s. Round to three significant digits.

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For a planet to be in a stable circular orbit it must have a velocity which is

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