Planetary Motion
Physics ⇒ Earth and Space Physics
Planetary Motion starts at 8 and continues till grade 12.
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See sample questions for grade 11
A comet has a highly eccentric orbit. What does this mean about its path around the Sun?
A planet is 4 times farther from the Sun than Earth. According to Kepler's Third Law, how many Earth years does it take to complete one orbit?
A satellite orbits Earth at a height where the acceleration due to gravity is 4.9 m/s². What fraction of Earth's surface gravity is this?
Calculate the gravitational force between two 1,000 kg masses separated by 10 meters. (G = 6.67 × 10⁻¹¹ N·m²/kg²)
Describe what is meant by 'orbital resonance' in planetary systems.
Explain why planets do not fall into the Sun despite the gravitational attraction.
A satellite orbits Earth at a height where the acceleration due to gravity is 4.9 m/s². What fraction of Earth's surface gravity is this?
Calculate the gravitational force between two 1,000 kg masses separated by 10 meters. (G = 6.67 × 10⁻¹¹ N·m²/kg²)
If a planet's orbital period is 27 years, what is its average distance from the Sun in astronomical units (AU)? (Use Kepler's Third Law: T² = r³)
Which of the following best describes the shape of planetary orbits?
(1) Circular
(2) Elliptical
(3) Parabolic
(4) Hyperbolic
Which of the following best explains why the same side of the Moon always faces the Earth?
(1) The Moon's rotation period equals its orbital period
(2) The Moon does not rotate
(3) The Moon's orbit is circular
(4) The Moon is tidally locked to the Sun
Which of the following is a direct consequence of Kepler's Second Law?
(1) Planets move faster when closer to the Sun
(2) All planets have the same orbital period
(3) The Sun is at the center of the universe
(4) The orbits of planets are circular
Which of the following is NOT a consequence of Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation?
(1) Tides on Earth
(2) The Moon's orbit around Earth
(3) The seasons on Earth
(4) The orbits of planets around the Sun
If the distance between two planets is tripled, the gravitational force between them becomes ______ times weaker.
The eccentricity of a planet's orbit describes how much it deviates from being a perfect ________.
The force that keeps planets in orbit around the Sun is called ________.
The gravitational force between two objects depends on their masses and the ______ between them.
According to Kepler's Second Law, a planet moves fastest in its orbit when it is closest to the Sun. True or False?
Kepler's Third Law can be mathematically expressed as T² ∝ r³, where T is the orbital period and r is the average distance from the Sun. True or False?
The gravitational constant (G) is the same everywhere in the universe. True or False?
