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Over 500 planets have so far been detected beyond our solar system. This is acco

ID: 1463624 • Letter: O

Question

Over 500 planets have so far been detected beyond our solar system. This is accomplished by looking for the effect the planet has on the star. The star is not truly stationary; instead, it and its planets orbit around the center of mass of the system. Astronomers can measure this wobble in the position of a star.

If the planet had four times earth's mass, where would the center of mass of the system be located, relative to the center of the star, if the planet was just as far from the star as the earth is from the sun?

Explanation / Answer

we have,
Mass of star = M
mass of planet = 2m ( m is mass of earth)

Center of mass = xcm = [M(0) + 2m( 1 AU)]/(M+2m) = [2m/(M+2m)] AU
( AU is astronomical unit, distance from sun to earth)

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