What is the orbital speed of a satellite in a geostationary orbit about the Earth? (The necessary altitude above ground for a geo-stationary satellite is 35,800 km;the Earth's radius is 6400 km.)

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The formula for orbital speed is:

V = (GM/r)^0.5

where G is the gravitational constant, M is the mass of the Earth, and r is the distance between the center of the Earth and the satellite. For a geostationary orbit, the distance r is equal to the sum of the radius of the Earth and the altitude of the orbit:

r = 6400 km + 35,800 km = 42,200 km

Substituting the values into the formula, we get:

V = (6.67 × 10^-11 N·m^2/kg^2 × 5.97 × 10^24 kg / 42,200,000 m)^0.5
V = 3074 m/s = 3.1 km/s

Therefore, the answer is C) 3.1 km/s.

What Is the Orbital Speed of a Satellite in a Geostationary