Lab+Saturn0Rings
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School
California State University, Fullerton *
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Course
295
Subject
Astronomy
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
4
Uploaded by CorporalTank11733
Saturn’s Rings
Background:
In
the lab you will use your knowledge of Kepler’s and Newton’s Laws to analyze the behavior of ring patterns in the
rings of
Saturn.
Purpose:
To summarize how shepherd moons manage to keep the particles that orbit between their orbits tightly confined
within a narrow ring.
Part 1
: Applying Kepler’s Laws to Rings and Satellites
Figure 1
shows an image of part of Saturn’s rings taken
by
the
Cassini
spacecraft. The rings are made of millions of icy chunks. These ring
particles follow Kepler’s Laws, each
in
its own orbit. From this image:
1.
Which set of particles
will
travel fastest?
(A,
B, or C)
2.
Which set will be traveling the slower?
Figure 2
shows a
Cassini
Image of two moons Pandora and Prometheus,
the
F
Ring, and the outer part of the
A
Ring of Saturn.
Ran
k
the following objects
in
order of orbiting Saturn the fastest (1) to
orbiting Saturn the slowest (4):
4
Pandora
1
A
Ring
3
F
Ring
2
Prometheus
Name:
Ma. Cristina Nicole Mangente
Part 2: How a Single Moon Clears a Gap in
the
Rings
Figure 3 shows a moon and two ring particles. The inner ring particle will have a slightly higher speed than the moon, as
indicated by the longer arrow
in the direction
of its orbit,
and the outer
ring particle
will
have a
slightly
slower speed
than
the moon, as indicated
by
the shorter arrow
in
the direction of its orbit. The moon
will
have a strong gravitational effect
on both ring particles.
3.
Draw arrows
that represent the direction in which the moon’s gravity will act on these two particles. Label these
arrows to distinguish them from the arrows representing the speeds of the particles.
4.
Just after a particle loses speed, will it move “down” or “up”; that is, closer or farther from the planet
?
5.
Conversely, just after a particle gains speed, will it move ”down“ or ”up; that is, closer or farther from the
planet?
6.
Will the inner ring
particle accelerate
or decelerate
due
to the interaction?
7.
Will the outer ring particle accelerate or decelerate due to the interaction?
8.
Now,
draw arrows
on Figure 3 that indicates the direction each particle will go in its orbit when affected by the
single moon. Label these arrows to distinguish them from the arrows representing the gravitational forces.
9.
As a particle falls “down” toward the planet, it
will
gain a little speed. This will stabilize it
in
a new, lower orbit.
The outer particles, however,
speed as the move away from the planet, so they stabilize in a new,
higher
orbit.
Part
3
:
How
Two
Moons
Shepherd
Ring
Particles
Figure 4 shows a ring interacting with two moons. The inner shepherd moon will have a slightly higher speed and the outer
shepherd moon will have a slightly lower speed than the ring particles, as indicated
by
the sizes of the arrows pointing
in
the direction of the moons’ orbits. We once again need to consider Kepler’s Third Law.
10.
Do the stray ring
particles
move faster
or slower
than the outer shepherd
moon
? Faster
11.
Do the stray ring
particles
move faster
or slower
than the
in
ner shepherd moon? Slower
12.
The moons have a strong gravitational effect on the stray ring
particles.
Draw arrows
on
Figure 4 that represent the
direction
in
which each moon’s gravity
will
act on the stray ring particles closest to it. Label these arrows to
distinguish them from the arrows representing the speeds of the moons.
13.
Now, consider your answers from the previous section, and
draw
arrows on Figure 4 that indicate the direction each
stray ring particle
will
do
in
its orbit after being affected by the shepherd moon closest to it. Label these arrows to
distinguish them from the arrows representing the gravitational forces.
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