In Its 1986 Trip Around the Sun, It Was Estimated

question 72

Essay

In its 1986 trip around the Sun, it was estimated that Comet Halley lost approximately 100 billion kg of material.The total mass of the nucleus was estimated to be 3 *10¹⁴ kg.Assuming the mass loss rate is constant with each passage, and assuming the nucleus remains intact until there is nothing left, how many more times will we see Comet Halley? Explain why your answer is an upper limit.

---

Definitions:

Dollar Votes

The “votes” that consumers cast for the production of preferred products when they purchase those products rather than the alternatives that were also available.

Product Market

A marketplace where final goods or services are bought and sold by consumers, businesses, and the government.

Laissez-Faire Capitalism

A hypothetical economic system in which the government’s economic role is limited to protecting private property and establishing a legal environment appropriate to the operation of markets in which only mutually agreeable transactions take place between buyers and sellers; sometimes referred to as “pure capitalism.”

Specialization

The use of the resources of an individual, a firm, a region, or a nation to concentrate production on one or a small number of goods and services.