Physics

Problem

An astronaut of mass

65\,\text{kg}

is inside a stationary spacecraft

400\,\text{km}

above Earth’s surface. Taking the surface gravitational acceleration to be

9.8\,\text{m/s}^2

and Earth’s radius to be

6.4\times10^6\,\text{m}

, what is the magnitude of the gravitational force on the astronaut at this altitude? a)

6.0\times10^{2}\,\text{N}

5.6\times10^{2}\,\text{N}

4.8\times10^{2}\,\text{N}

6.4\times10^{2}\,\text{N}