Question

Two pieces of space junk are floating together in the same orbit near a damaged satellite. Both are neutral spheres, with diameters of 50 cm and 100 cm. A storage battery on the satellite explodes, sending ions in all directions and contaminating the spheres, which acquire charges. The smaller one has a charge of -10 microcoulombs and the larger carries +20 microcoulombs. Their surfaces are initially 4.5m apart.

a) What is the electric field midway between the CENTERS of the spheres?

b) What is the potential energy of the two-sphere system?

c) The spheres drift toward each other. When their services collide, what is the kinetic energy of the system?

Answer 1

qi q2 rria rz 250m 50cm &= 0.2725m 8 = 0.5225m 82= 8,227.25cm 125cm 6.59x10S NYC 0 795m. • 52.12 79.5cm =r Kq 9x109x loxiob Ei = 1.21 x 106 NC (0:272512 E Kq2 9x109 x 20x106 82 (0.522992 Enet 20.659x10bnyc = E,+E 1.21x100 +0.659X106 = 1.87X10 NIE K 2192 Aug. (Toulard left) > @) こ (b) U= gx109xL-10X106) x620x106) 0.795 = -2.26 Joules = UŻ Ans G (C) Electric Potential energy when spheres collides 33 =25cm + 50cm 75cm U Kq, 192 83 -0.75cm B 9x109x 4-10x10 l) x[20x106) 0.75 = -2.4 Joules AKES-AU -14-07) --[-2.4 - (-2.21)] = -(-0.14] +0.14 Joules Ang. 4