An exo-planet orbits its local star, of mass 2.00x10^30kg, in a steady circular orbit of radius 8.00x10^8km. Calculate the orbital period of the star, in years.

Key idea is equating gravitational force between planet and star (right hand side) with the centripetal force necessary to maintain the orbit (left hand side):(mv2)/r = (GMm)/r2Notice how the mass of the planet cancels here; only the mass of the star is needed. Thus this can be rearranged to find the orbital velocity.v2 = GM/r.The orbital velocity is related to the angular frequency by v = ωr and the angular frequency, ω, can be related to the period by ω = 2π/T. Hence we get:2π/T = (GM/r3)(1/2)And hence T = 2π((r3/GM))(1/2).Substitute in the values for M, G and r to calculate T, the orbital period. Answers should be given to 2sf, given the precision in the data provided. Be sure to convert the answer into years from seconds, and be aware that r is given in kilometres and will need to be converted to metres.T = 2π((8.00x1011m)3/6.67x10-11Nm2kg–2 x2.00x1030kg)(1/2) = 3.89x108s or 12.3 years.

Answered by Physics tutor

1843 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

Give the definition simple harmonic motion and write down the defining equation for such motion stating the meaning of any symbols involved.


What is the photo-electric effect and what impact did it have on the development of Quantum Mechanics?


The mass of the Earth is 6.0x10^24 kg and its radius is 6.4x10^6m, calculate the orbital speed of the moon around the earth, the orbit of the moon is a circle of approximate radius of 60R where R is the radius of the earth and a mass m.


A ball of mass 0.25 kg is travelling with a velocity of 1.2 m/s when it collides with an identical, stationary ball. After the collision, the two balls move together with the same velocity. How fast are they moving?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning