Neutron stars, such as the one at the center of the Crab Nebula, have about the

Question

Neutron stars, such as the one at the center of the Crab Nebula, have about the same mass as our sun but a much smaller diameter.

If you weigh 650 N on the earth, what would be your weight on the surface of a neutron star that has the same mass as our sun and a diameter of 19.0 km ?

Take the mass of the sun to be ms = 1.99×1030 kg , the gravitational constant to be G = 6.67×1011 Nm2/kg2 , and the acceleration due to gravity at the earth's surface to be g = 9.810 m/s2 .

Express your weight wstar in newtons.

Explanation / Answer

mass =weight/acceleration

=650/9.81=66.259 kg

acceleration due to gravity on any celestial body is given by

G*M/R^2

where G=universal gravitational constant=6.67*10^(-11)

M=mass of the body=1.99*10^30 kg

R=radius =19 km/2=9.5 km=9500 m

then acceleration due to gravity on this star=6.67*10^(-11)*1.99*10^30/9500^2=1.4707*10^12 m/s^2

so your weight will become=mass*acceleration due to gravity

=66.259*1.4707*10^12=9.7447*10^13 N

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