Question

A space probe was launched to perform a surface study of Venus. The probe's average distance from the center of Venus was 6.79 x 10⁹ m. The mass of Venus is 4.88 x 10²⁴ kg. The average gravitational field strength of Venus at the probe's location is _____ N/kg.

A) 6.79 x 10⁹
B) 4.88 x 10²⁴
C) 2.36 x 10¹⁵
D) 1.40 x 10⁻¹⁵

Answer 1

The average gravitational field strength of Venus at the probe's location is 1.40 x 10^{-1} N/kg, calculated using the universal gravitational constant, the mass of Venus, and the probe's average distance from Venus's center.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student asked the question: What is the average gravitational field strength of Venus at the probe's location? To calculate the gravitational field strength at the probe's location, we apply the formula for gravitational force:

g = \frac{GM}{r^2}

where G is the universal gravitational constant (6.67 \times 10^{-11} N \cdot m^2/kg^2), M is the mass of Venus (4.88 \times 10^{24} kg), and r is the average distance from the center of Venus to the probe (6.79 \times 10^{9} m).

Using these values, we get:

g = \frac{(6.67 \times 10^{-11} N \cdot m^2/kg^2) \times (4.88 \times 10^{24} kg)}{(6.79 \times 10^{9} m)^2}

Calculating this gives us:

g = 1.40 \times 10^{-1} N/kg

Therefore, the correct answer is D) 1.40 \times 10^{-1} N/kg.