Tidal Friction For the calculations below, note that the Moon's mass is about 1/80th of the Earth's, so the total mass o
Posted: Sun Jul 17, 2022 8:43 pm
Tidal Friction
For the calculations below, note that the Moon's mass is about1/80th of the Earth's, so the total mass of the Earth-Moon systemis essentially the Earth's mass.
(a) Once the Earth is in synchronous rotation with the Moon'sorbit, what will be the semimajor axis (in km) of the Moon's orbit?Will it be inside or outside the Earth's Hill sphere?
(b) How large (in angular diameter) will the Moon appear in theEarth's sky once it's in synchronous orbit?
For the calculations below, note that the Moon's mass is about1/80th of the Earth's, so the total mass of the Earth-Moon systemis essentially the Earth's mass.
(a) Once the Earth is in synchronous rotation with the Moon'sorbit, what will be the semimajor axis (in km) of the Moon's orbit?Will it be inside or outside the Earth's Hill sphere?
(b) How large (in angular diameter) will the Moon appear in theEarth's sky once it's in synchronous orbit?