Quiz 3

(question 1 & 2 are of 0.5 point each, question 3 is of 1 point.

You may do the calculations on the back of the page but do write the final answers next to the question)

1. Electric force between two charges Q1 and Q2 in vacuum separated by a

distance 'r', is given by Coulomb's law:

where o permittivity of free space.

Use the above equation to find the units of o. (Show your working)

2. One interesting application of Gravitational Potential energy is in the calculation

of escape velocity.
Escape velocity is defined as the lowest velocity that a body must have in order to
escape the gravitational attraction of a particular planet or other object.
Use the Potential energy formula (U12 = - G.m1.m2/r12 ) to find the potential energy
of a body at the surface of earth (r12 = Re), and use the fact that at infinity,
Potential energy due to earth's gravity is zero.
Hint: use conservation of mechanical energy (total mechanical energy=kinetic
energy+ potential energy= constant)

3. Consider three equal masses 'm' placed at the vertices of an equilateral

triangle. A mass 'M' is kept at the center of the triangle. Find:
a. the net potential energy of the 'M' kept at the center of the triangle
b. the net gravitational force on the mass 'M'
---------------------------Bonus: non-graded------------------------------4. Astronauts appear weightless in their Earth-orbiting spacecraft because
a. They have escaped Earths gravity.
b. There is no air in the spacecraft.
c. They are moving at the same rate as their spacecraft.
d. The spacecrafts rocket engines counteract gravity.
5. Use the equation derived for the escape velocity, to find the escape velocity of
a black hole!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------Thought: Gravity never becomes perfectly zero.
You are exerting a force on every single particle in the universe and every particle
on you...!