Chapter 0, Problem 23P

The force of gravity on an object (which we expenence as the object’s weight) varies inversely as the square of the distance from the center of the earth. Determine the force of gravity on an astronaut when he is at a height of 6000 km from the surface of the earth if he weighs 700 newtons (N) when on the surface of the earth The radius of the earth is 6.38 × 10⁶ m. (If the astronaut is in orbit, he will float “weightlessly.” but gravity still acts on him—he and his spaceship appear weightless because they are falling freely m their orbit around the earth.)