re: HSC Physics Marathon Archive
The force of gravity between the planet and a moon of mass M is , where the planet's mass is MP. This provides the centripetal force for the moon, which is equal to mv2/r, where v is equal for all three planets. So , from which we see that the m's cancel out and we get that (constant), so orbital radii are in ratio 1:1:1 (same).Question:
3 moons, X, Y and Z are in orbit around the same planet. The moons have identical orbital speeds, but masses of M, 9M and 25M respectively. Determine the ratio of their orbital radii and justify your answer.