Chapter 46, Ice Worlds, Pluto, and Beyond Video Solutions, Pathways to Astronomy

Problem 1

Io, Europa, and Ganymede orbit at distances from Jupiter's center of $421,800 \mathrm{km}, 671,100 \mathrm{km},$ and $1,070,400 \mathrm{km},$ respectively. Calculate how many times longer it takes for Europa and Ganymede to orbit Jupiter than for Io to orbit. (Hint: You do not need to know Jupiter's mass to calculate the ratio of times.)

Jose Martinez

Numerade Educator

02:11

Problem 2

Use the modified form of Kepler's third law (discussed in detail in Unit 17 ) to calculate Pluto's mass from the orbital data for Charon given in the text. Be sure to convert the orbital period to seconds and the orbital radius to meters before putting those numbers into the formula.

Shoukat Ali

Other Schools

01:54

Problem 3

Calculate the density of Charon, given that its radius is approximately $593 \mathrm{km}$ and its mass is about $1.1 \times 10^{21} \mathrm{kg}$. (Be sure to convert kilometers to meters, and remember that there are 1000 liters per cubic meter.) Is it likely that Charon has a large iron core? Why?

Mirza Aslam Beig

Numerade Educator

03:40

Problem 4

Calculate the angular size of Pluto in arc seconds as seen from Earth. Pluto's diameter is $2320 \mathrm{km}$ and its distance is about $39 \mathrm{AU}$.

Pritesh Ranjan

Numerade Educator

03:39

Problem 5

If Orcus has three-fourths of Pluto's radius and the same density, how many times smaller is its mass?

Matthew Miranda

Numerade Educator

07:52

Problem 6

Triton's orbit is tilted about $157^{\circ}$ with respect to Neptune's equator, while Neptune's equator is tilted about $28^{\circ}$ with respect to the plane of its orbit around the Sun.
a Sketch the Neptune-Triton system, marking the plane of Neptune's orbit and setting up the tilts and inclinations correctly.
b. Tidal forces cause Earth's Moon to gradually spiral outward. Draw a diagram similar to the one shown in Unit 19 Figure $19.5,$ for Earth's Moon to explain why Triton will instead spiral inward.
c. Is it possible that any of the giant planets might have previously "swallowed" a moon? Explain your reasoning.

Mohamed Mohamed

Numerade Educator

01:37

Problem 7

Figure 46.6 a shows a picture of about 10 kilometers of Titan's surface, taken by the Huygens probe as it descended to Titan's surface. Find a picture of river valleys on Earth that looks similar to the Titan image. What differences do you find between the feature seen on Titan and the most similar-looking features on Earth? Is this comparison strong enough evidence to state that Titan has rivers? Support your answer.

Rodger Claar

Numerade Educator