An astronaut of mass is inside a stationary spacecraft above Earth’s surface

PHYSICS · Single correct · CBSE · Physics · Gravitation · Gravitation

Problem

An astronaut of mass 65 kg65\,\text{kg} is inside a stationary spacecraft 400 km400\,\text{km} above Earth’s surface. Taking the surface gravitational acceleration to be 9.8 m/s29.8\,\text{m/s}^2 and Earth’s radius to be 6.4×106 m6.4\times10^6\,\text{m}, what is the magnitude of the gravitational force on the astronaut at this altitude? (a) 6.0×102 N6.0\times10^{2}\,\text{N} (b) 5.6×102 N5.6\times10^{2}\,\text{N} (c) 4.8×102 N4.8\times10^{2}\,\text{N} (d) 6.4×102 N6.4\times10^{2}\,\text{N}

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