Question

An astronaut goes out for a space-walk at a distance 4,703 kilometers (convert!) above the Earth's surface. What is her acceleration due to gravity? Earth's mean radius is RF = 6.37 x 100 m: Earth's mass is MF = 5.97 x 1024kg. Express your answer in m/s 2 and round it to two decimals.

Answer 1

The acceleration due to gravity depends on the distance from the center of mass of the large body to the astronaut. This distance is the sum of the radius of the Earth and the distance from the astronaut to the surface of earth:

g = G*M/R²

where g is the acceleration due to gravity.

M is the mass of earth end R is the distance between the astronaut and earth.

using the given data,

g = (6.673 * 10^-11)*(5.97*10^24)/[(4.703+6.3)*10^6]^2

g = 3.27 m/s²

Thus the acceleration due to gravity for astronaut is 3.27 m/s².