Gravity and the Orbits of Planets and Satellites Student Notes and Questions

The first file has student notes which cover the force of gravity, orbits and how gravity provides the centripetal force It also shows how the radius of orbit and the speed of the planet are related.
It gives information on the planets surrounding the Sun and mentions comets, asteroids, meteors and meteorites.
It show how the radius of orbit of a satellite and its speed are related and explains what geostationary and polar obits are as well as giving their different uses.
It gives the advantages of having scientific satellites above the earth’s atmosphere and it explains why satellites eventually fall to Earth
Lastly it reminds students how the kinetic energy is constant and the momentum is continually changing for an object in orbit at a constant speed.
There are a few words to be completed by the student.

The second file has the missing words.

The third file has a number of questions to check their understanding of the above notes. Students will have to read the notes carefully before answering the questions.

The fourth file has the answers to the questions.