Keplers laws of planetary motion, gravitational potential energy and gravitational potential - Question Bank
1. What is the relationship between gravitational potential energy (U) and gravitational force (F) for a system of two masses?
2. The work done in moving a particle of mass 'm' from a point A to a point B in a gravitational field is independent of the path taken if the gravitational force is:
3. According to Kepler's Third Law, for planets orbiting the Sun, the ratio T^2/a^3 is:
4. The gravitational potential at a point is the potential energy per unit:
5. If we define the gravitational potential energy of an object to be zero at the Earth's surface, then at a height 'h' above the surface, it would be:
6. The gravitational potential energy of a satellite of mass 'm' in a circular orbit of radius 'r' around the Earth of mass 'M' is:
7. Which law states that the line joining a planet and the Sun sweeps out equal areas in equal intervals of time?
8. The gravitational potential energy of a system of two identical masses 'm' separated by a distance 'r' is:
9. Kepler's Third Law is often used to determine the mass of a central body if the orbital parameters of a satellite are known. If a satellite's period is T and its orbital radius is R (for a circular orbit), the mass of the central body is proportional to:
10. If the Earth's mass is doubled and its radius is halved, what happens to the gravitational potential at its surface?
11. The gravitational potential at a distance 'r' from a point mass 'M' is numerically equal to the work done per unit mass in bringing the mass from infinity to that point. This work done is:
12. For a planet in an elliptical orbit, the speed is highest when it is:
13. The gravitational potential energy of a system of two particles of masses m1 and m2 at infinite separation is defined as:
14. Kepler's First Law is a specific case of which mathematical conic section?
15. The gravitational potential at a point P is V. If a mass 'm' is brought from infinity to P, the work done by the gravitational field is:
16. Which planet has the shortest orbital period around the Sun?
17. If the Sun suddenly vanished, the gravitational potential energy of the Earth would become:
18. The gravitational potential energy of an object of mass 'm' at a height 'h' above the Earth's surface (mass M, radius R) is approximately:
19. Kepler's Second Law is a consequence of the conservation of:
20. If the distance between two masses is doubled, their gravitational potential energy:
21. What is the gravitational potential at the center of a uniform solid sphere of mass M and radius R?
22. The work done by the gravitational force as a planet moves from perihelion to aphelion in its orbit is:
23. According to Kepler's First Law, the eccentricity 'e' of a circular orbit is:
24. The gravitational potential energy of a system of N particles is the sum of the potential energies of all possible pairs of particles. For a system of three particles, it is:
25. Gravitational potential is a scalar quantity, while gravitational field is a vector quantity. The relationship between them is:
26. If the Earth were to collapse to a point mass, its gravitational potential at its surface would:
27. Consider a planet moving in an elliptical orbit around the Sun. Its angular momentum is conserved because:
28. Kepler's Third Law relates the orbital period (T) and the semi-major axis (a) of an elliptical orbit for planets around the same star. For two planets 1 and 2, the ratio of their periods squared is equal to:
29. The gravitational potential energy of a system of particles is defined as the work done by an external agent against the gravitational force to assemble the system from a configuration where the potential energy is zero. This zero potential energy configuration is typically:
30. The work done to bring a unit positive test mass from infinity to a point in a gravitational field is equal to:
31. If the semi-major axis of a planet's orbit is doubled, how does its orbital period change according to Kepler's Third Law?
32. The gravitational potential due to a point mass 'M' at a distance 'r' is given by:
33. Which of the following is NOT a direct consequence of Kepler's laws?
34. What is the gravitational potential at infinity?
35. The gravitational potential energy of a system is the energy stored in the system due to:
36. The 'areal velocity' of a planet, as described by Kepler's Second Law, is:
37. If a planet has a larger semi-major axis, its orbital period will be:
38. The gravitational potential at the center of a uniform spherical shell of mass M and radius R is:
39. The gravitational potential energy of a satellite in orbit around the Earth is:
40. What is the unit of gravitational potential?
41. If a body of mass 'm' is moved from infinity to a point at distance 'r' from a mass 'M', the change in its gravitational potential energy is:
42. The gravitational potential at the surface of the Earth (mass M, radius R) is:
43. Gravitational potential at a point is defined as the work done per unit:
44. The gravitational potential energy is taken to be zero when the separation between the masses is:
45. Gravitational potential energy of a system of two point masses m1 and m2 separated by a distance r is given by:
46. For a planet orbiting the Sun, the quantity that remains constant according to Kepler's Second Law is:
47. If T is the orbital period and R is the radius of a circular orbit (approximating semi-major axis), Kepler's Third Law can be expressed as:
48. The path of a planet around the Sun is an ellipse, with the Sun at one of the foci. This is a statement of:
49. Kepler's Second Law implies that a planet's orbital speed is:
50. Which of Kepler's laws states that the square of the orbital period of a planet is directly proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis of its orbit?