Question

If Mercury was moved to a position farther away from the Sun than Mars, would Mercury orbit faster or slower than Mars in this new orbit, and why?

A) Mercury would orbit at the same speed as Mars, because orbital speed doesn't depend on position.
B) Mercury would orbit faster than Mars, because it is smaller than Mars.
C) Mercury would orbit faster than Mars, because of Kepler's 3rd law.
D) Mercury would orbit slower than Mars, because it is smaller than Mars.
E) Mercury would orbit slower than Mars, because of Kepler's 3rd law.

Answer 1

Mercury would orbit slower than Mars if it were farther from the Sun than Mars, based on Kepler's third law, which relates orbital period to the semi-major axis of the orbit.

Step-by-step explanation:

If Mercury was moved to a position farther away from the Sun than Mars, Mercury would orbit slower than Mars due to Kepler's third law. This law states that the orbital period of a planet increases with the semi-major axis of its orbit. Since Mercury would be in a new orbit with a larger radius than that of Mars, its orbital period would be longer, and thus its orbital speed would be slower. It is not the size of the planet but rather the distance from the Sun and the orbital path that affects the orbital speed, thereby making the correct answer to the question E) Mercury would orbit slower than Mars, because of Kepler's 3rd law.