SHS

General Physics 1 Activity Sheet

Quarter 2 – MELC 12
Week 2
Orbits

REGION VI – WESTERN VISAYAS

General Physics 1 Activity Sheet No. 5 – Orbits
First Edition, 2020

Published in the Philippines

By the Department of Education
Region 6 – Western Visayas

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Development Team of Activity Sheet

Writer: Esaya Perez

Reviewer: Joseph M. Pagalaran

Division of Himamaylan City Management Team:

Reynaldo G. Gico,
Bernie L. Libo-on,
Grace T. Nicavera,
Mylene D. Lopez,
Joseph M. Pagalaran

Regional Management Team:

Ma. Gemma M. Ledesma,
Josilyn S. Solana,
Elena P. Gonzaga,
Donald T. Genine,
Rovel R. Salcedo,
Moonyeen C. Rivera,
Anita S. Gubalane,
Minda L. Soldevilla,
Daisy L. Lopez,
Joseph M. Pagalaran

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Introductory Message
Welcome to General Physics 1!

The Learning Activity Sheet is a product of the collaborative efforts of

the Schools Division of Himamaylan City and DepEd Regional Office VI -
Western Visayas through the Curriculum and Learning Management Division
(CLMD). This is developed to guide the learning facilitators (teachers, parents
and responsible adults) in helping the learners meet the standards set by the
K to 12 Basic Education Curriculum.

The Learning Activity Sheet is self-directed instructional materials

aimed to guide the learners in accomplishing activities at their own pace and
time using the contextualized resources in the community. This will also
assist the learners in acquiring the lifelong learning skills, knowledge and
attitudes for productivity and employment.

For learning facilitator:

The General Physics 1 Activity Sheet will help you facilitate the leaching-
learning activities specified in each Most Essential Learning Competency (MELC)
with minimal or no face-to-face encounter between you and learner. This will be
made available to the learners with the references/links to ease the independent
learning.

For the learner:

The General Physics 1 Activity Sheet is developed to help you continue

learning even if you are not in school. This learning material provides you with
meaningful and engaging activities for independent learning. Being an active
learner, carefully read and understand the instructions then perform the activities
and answer the assessments. This will be returned to your facilitator on the agreed
schedule.

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Name of Learner: __________________________________________________________
Grade and Section: ___________________________Date: _______________________

General Physics 1 Activity Sheet No: 5

Orbits
I. Learning Competency with Code
Calculate quantities related to planetary or satellite motion.
(STEM_GP12G-Red-IIb-20)

II. Background Information for Learners

In this modern technology, artificial satellites orbiting the earth are common.
But how do these artificial satellites stay in orbit, and what determines the
properties of their orbits? You can use Newton’s laws and the law of gravitation to
provide the answers.
Between 16th and 17th centuries, one of the greatest accomplishments in
science was the threefold realization that the planets orbit the sun including the
earth and that the apparent motions of the planets as seen from the earth can be
used to precisely determine their orbits.
In this learning activity, you are expected to calculate problems related to
planetary or satellite motion.

III. Activity Proper

Activity 1 A. Planetary and Satellite Motion

Consider a cannonball fired horizontally from the top of a mountain. Fired

with an initial slow speed, it will follow the trajectory previously discussed in
projectile motion. Fired with greater speed, it will reach a longer horizontal distance.
The more you increase its initial speed, the farther it gets. If you fire with just enough
speed, it will continue to fall, but it will not hit the ground. Rather, the cannonball
will orbit Earth and become a satellite.

A satellite is an object that rotates

around the planet. The moon is a natural
satellite of Earth because its motion is
determined almost entirely by gravity, the
moon is somehow in a state of perpetual
free-fall – it continuously falls without
hitting the ground.

The radius of the orbit is r, (Circular) orbital motion

measured from the center of the earth; the Uploaded by: Learn venture – Computational Physics,
August 14, 2017
acceleration of the satellite has magnitude
arad = v2 / r and is always directed toward the center of the circle. By the law of
gravitation, the arad = v2 / r net force (gravitational force) on the satellite of mass m
has magnitude Fg = GmEm / r2 and is in the same direction as the acceleration.
Newton’s second law (F = ma) then tells us that:
F = ma
Fg= GmEm/r2
a = v2/r
GmEm = mv2
r2 r
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Solving this to find the velocity/speed of the circular orbit, you find…
GmEmr = v2 where:
r 2m G = universal gravitation constant
= 6.7x10-11 N-m2/kg2
GmEmr = v2 Fg = force of gravity between two objects
r 2m v2 = velocity/speed of circular orbit
GmEr = v2 mE = mass of Earth
r2 m = mass of object in an orbit
r = radius of the orbit from the center of the Earth
GmEr = v2
a = radial acceleration
r

,, for satellites only

This relationship shows that you cannot choose the orbit radius r and the
speed independently; for a given radius r, the speed for a circular orbit is determined.

The satellite’s mass m does not appear in the equation above, which shows
that the motion of a satellite does not depend on its mass. If you could cut a satellite
in half without changing its speed, each half would continue with the original motion.

Apparent weightlessness is not just a feature of circular orbits; it occurs

whenever gravity is the only force acting on a spacecraft. Hence it occurs for orbits
of any shape.

For the general motion of an object in a circular manner, you can relate the
radius r of a circular orbit and the speed of the object by the equation related to
period T, the time for one revolution. The speed is the distance traveled in one
revolution, divided by the period:

where:
v = is the speed of the object travelling in an orbit
2 r = distance of the orbit (in one revolution)
T = period for one revolution

To get an expression for T, we use the equation above to solve for T and substitute:

Sample Problem:

You wish to put a 1000-kg satellite into a circular orbit 300 km above the earth’s
surface. What speed, period, and radial acceleration will it have?

Solution:

The radius of the satellite’s orbit is r = 6380 km + 300 km = 6680 km = 6.68 x 106
m. The orbital speed is

2
 = 7720 m/s

To find the orbital period, we have:

Finally, the radial acceleration is

PROBLEM SOLVING 1: Answer as required.

1. NASA is expected to send a 2600-kg satellite 450 km above the earth’s

surface.
(a) What is its radius? (b) What speed will it have?
(Hint: Earth’s mass is 5.97 x 1024 kg)

(b) What is its orbital period?

(c) What is its radial acceleration?

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Problem- Solving 2: Answer as required.

A satellite wishes to orbit the earth at a height of 100 km above the surface of the
Earth. Determine the following.
a. speed
b. acceleration
c. orbital period of the satellite.

IV. Reflection:

Why is it important to study the satellites and the planetary motion?

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Problem- Solving 2
Given:
mE = 5.97x1024 kg
d = 100 km
rE = 6380 km
G = 6.67x10-11 N – m2/kg2
Solution: radius = rE + d = 100 km + 450 km
= 550 km x 1000 m/km
r = 550,000 m
2a. speed = √ (GmE / r)
= √ 6.67x10-11 N – m2/kg2 (5.97x1024 kg) / 550,000 m
v = 26,907.21 m/s
2b. arad = v2 / r
= (26,907.21 m/s)2 / 550,000 m
arad = 1,316 m/s2
2c. T = 2 r/v
= 2 (550,000 m) / 26,907.21 m/s
T = 128.43 sec
Problem- Solving 1
Given: ms = 2,600 kg
mE = 5.97x1024 kg
d = 450 km
rE = 6380 km
G = 6.67x10-11 N – m2/kg2
Solution:
1a. radius = rE + d = 6380 km + 450 km
= 6830 km x 1000 m/km
r = 6,830,000 m
1b. speed = √ (GmE / r)
= √ 6.67x10-11 N – m2/kg2 (5.97x1024 kg) / 6,830,000 m
v = 7635.54 m/s
1c. rad
a = v2 / r
= (7635.54 m/s)2 / 6,830,000 m
arad = 8.53 m/s2
V. Answer Key
VI. Other References

Santisteban, Celeste Joan C., Baguio, Saranay M. Breaking Through Physics. EDSA,
South Triangle, Quezon City: C&E Publishing. 2007

Santos, Gil Nonato C., General Physics 1. 1st ed. Manila, Philippines: Rex Book Store,
2017.

Young, Hugh D., Roger A. Freedman, A. Lewis Ford, and Hugh D. Young. Sears and
Zemansky's University Physics. 13th ed. Boston, MA: Pearson Learning
Solutions, 2012.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion.”

Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., November 26, 2020.

https://www.britannica.com/science/Keplers-laws-of-planetary-mo