Final answer:
The orbital kinetic energy of an equal-mass binary with separation a and individual masses m is given by the formula: Kinetic energy = Gm² / (2a). This equation shows that the kinetic energy is inversely proportional to the separation between the objects.
Step-by-step explanation:
The orbital kinetic energy of an equal-mass binary with separation a and individual masses m is given by the formula: Kinetic energy = Gm² / (2a). This equation shows that the kinetic energy is inversely proportional to the separation between the objects.
The orbital kinetic energy of an equal-mass binary with separation a and individual masses m is given by the formula:
Kinetic energy = Gm² / (2a)
Where:
G is the gravitational constant
m is the mass of each object in the binary
a is the separation between the objects
This equation shows that the kinetic energy is inversely proportional to the separation between the objects. As the separation increases, the kinetic energy decreases, and vice versa.