A Spaceship with a Mass of 2

question 45

Multiple Choice

A spaceship with a mass of 2.8 × 10⁶ kg is traveling toward two spherical asteroids,each with a mass of 5.0 × 10¹⁶ kg,that are 40 km apart center-to-center.Its path is perpendicular to the line joining the asteroids and is aimed at the midpoint of that line.What is the sum of the gravitational forces exerted by the asteroids on the spaceship when the spaceship is 30 km away from that midpoint? (G = 6.67 × 10^-11 N ∙ m²/kg²)

• A)12,000 N
• B)8,000 N
• C)16,000 N
• D)6,200 N
• E)18,000 N