Problem 9: The Sun orbits the center of the Milky Way galaxy once each 2.60 x 10

Question

Problem 9: The Sun orbits the center of the Milky Way galaxy once each 2.60 x 108 years, with a roughly circular orbit averaging 3.00 x 104 light years in radius. (A light year is the distance traveled by light in 1 y) Part (a) Calculate the centripetal acceleration of the Sun in its galactic orbit in m/s2 NumericA numeric value is expected and not an expression. Part (b) Calculate the average speed of the Sun in its galactic orbit in m/s. Numeric :A numeric value is expected and not an expression.

Explanation / Answer

r = 3 x 10^4 light years

r = (3 x 10^4)(3 x 10^8 m/s)(365 x 24 x 3600s)

r = 2.838 x 10^20 m

w = 2 pi / T = 2 pi /(2.60 x 10^8 x 365 x 24 x 3600) rad/s

w = 7.663 x 10^-16 rad/s

(A) a_c = w^2 r = 1.67 x 10^-10 m/s^2

(B) v = w r = 2.17 x 10^5 m/s

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