Use the Information in Table 6

Question

Examlex · Accepted Answer

The Answer is Since looking at the ratios of the angular momentums of these bodies will suffice, wecan leave the units alone. So angular momentum is proportional to mass × angular speed × radiusof the

ext { orbit } ^2 ext {. }

For Earth, this is

1 ext { Earth mass } imes 1 / ( 1 ext { Earth year } ) imes ( 1 ext { A.U. } ) ^ { 2 } = 1

Jupiter

318 imes 1 / 11.9 imes ( 11.2 ) ^ { 2 } = 3350

imes Earth's orbital angular momentumPluto:

0.002 imes 1 / 248 imes ( 39.5 ) ^ { 2 } = 0.013

imes Earth's orbital angular momentumThe radius of the orbit (approximated by the semi-major axis)is most significant because it issquared in the relationship. We can see this by comparing Pluto and Earth. Even though Pluto isonly 0.2% of the Earth's mass, it has more than 1% of the Earth's orbital angular momentum.

Use the Information in Table 6

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