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Centripetal acceleration of earth revolving around the sun

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Calculate the centripetal acceleration of the Earth in its orbit around the Sun and the net force exerted on the Earth. What exerts this force on the Earth? Assume the Earth's orbit is a circle of radius 1.50 x 10^11m.

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Solution Summary

The centripetal acceleration of the Earth in its orbit around the Sun is calculated. It is shown that the net force responsible for this acceleration is the gravitational force exerted on the Earth by the Sun.

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The formula for centripetal acceleration is:

F_{centr}= -omega^2*r r-hat

Here omega is the angular velocity and r-hat is the unit vector in the radial direction (i.e. pointing from the Sun to the Earth). So, the minus sign means that the ...

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