At a location near the Earth’s equator a student measures the period of a simple pendulum of length 1.00m and obtains 2.006s. The radius of the Earth may be taken as 6.37×106m.
Using these measurements, answer the following:
a. (i) Calculate the local acceleration due to gravity.
b. (ii) Using the value obtained in part (i) and the given radius of the Earth, determine the mass of the Earth.
c. (iii) A satellite of mass 1000kg is placed in a circular orbit 400km above the Earth’s surface. Using the mass calculated in part (ii), compute the gravitational force acting on the satellite in its orbit.