Each of the following lists two facts.Which pair of facts can be used with Newton's version of Kepler's third law to determine the mass of the Sun?
A)Earth is 150 million km from the Sun and orbits the Sun in one year.
B)Mercury is 0.387 AU from the Sun and Earth is 1 AU from the Sun.
C)The mass of Earth is 6 × 10²⁴ kg and Earth orbits the Sun in one year.
D)Earth rotates in one day and orbits the Sun in one year.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Newton's version of Kepler's third law allows us to calculate the mass of the Sun if we know the distance of a planet from the Sun and the period of its orbit. Choice A provides both the distance of Earth from the Sun (150 million km or 1 AU) and the period of Earth's orbit (one year), which are the necessary pieces of information to use this law.

Each of the Following Lists Two Facts