There is strong evidence that Europa, a satellite of Jupiter, has a liquid ocean

Question

There is strong evidence that Europa, a satellite of Jupiter, has a liquid ocean beneath its icy surface. Many scientists think we should land a vehicle there to search for life. Before launching it, we would want to test such a lander under the gravity conditions at the surface of Europa. One way to do this is to put the lander at the end of a rotating arm in an orbiting earth satellite.

If the arm is 4.50 long and pivots about one end, at what angular speed (in ) should it spin so that the acceleration of the lander is the same as the acceleration due to gravity at the surface of Europa? The mass of Europa is and its diameter is 3138 .

Explanation / Answer

g at the surface of europa=GM/r2=0.3253m/s2

g=2r

=0.255 rad/s= 0.255/2*60rpm

=2.435 rpm

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