Question

A satellite of mass m is in a circular orbit of radius about the earth. The energy required to transfer it to a circular orbit of radius is (where and is the mass and radius of the earth respectively)

• A.
• B.
• C.
• D.

Answer 1

Answer: (C)

Answer 2

Initial total energy of the satellite is

Final total energy of the satellite is

The changes in the total energy is

$\Delta \mathrm { E } = - \frac { \mathrm { GM } _ { \mathrm { E } } \mathrm { m } } { 8 \mathrm { R } _ { \mathrm { E } } } - \left( - \frac { \mathrm { GM } _ { \mathrm { E } } \mathrm { m } } { 4 \mathrm { R } _ { \mathrm { E } } } \right)$

Thus, the energy required to transfer the satellite to the desired orbit

=