High School

Two stars are in a binary system. One star is known to have a mass of 0.800 solar masses. If the system has an orbital period of 51.7 years and a semi-major axis of [tex]3.44 \times 10^9[/tex] km, what is the mass of the other star?

Answer :

Binary stars exist. One weighs 0.800 solar masses. If the system has a 51.7-year orbital period and a 3.44E+9-km semi-major axis,The mass of the other star in the binary system (M2) is approximately 9.226 × 10⁻³¹ kilograms.

To calculate the mass of the other star in the binary system, we can use Kepler's Third Law of Planetary Motion, which applies to binary systems as well. The formula is given by:

(M1 + M2) = (4π²a³) / (G × T²),

where M1 and M2 are the masses of the two stars, a is the semi-major axis of the orbit, G is the gravitational constant, and T is the orbital period.

We need to convert the units to be consistent:

M1 = 0.800 × (mass of the Sun) = 0.800 × 1.989E+30 kg,

a = 3.44E+9 km = 3.44E+12 m,

T = 51.7 years = 51.7 × 365.25 × 24 × 3600 s.

Substituting the values into the formula and solving for M2:

M2 = [(4π² × a³) / (G × T²)] - M1.

Now, we need to consider the values of the constants:

G = 6.67430E-11 m³ kg⁻¹ s⁻²,

π ≈ 3.14159.

Substituting the constants and the given values:

M2 = [(4 × π² × (3.44E+12)³) / (6.67430E-11 × (51.7 × 365.25 × 24 × 3600)²)] - (0.800 × 1.989E+30).

To evaluate the expression step by step:

Calculate the denominator of the expression:

Denominator = 6.67430E-11 × (51.7 × 365.25 × 24 × 3600)²

Denominator ≈ 1.77748428E+6

Calculate the numerator of the expression:

Numerator = 4 × π² × (3.44E+12)³

Numerator ≈ 1.67039364E+38

Subtract the product of the mass of the known star (M1) and the conversion factor:

M1 = 0.800 × 1.989E+30

M1 ≈ 1.5912E+30

M2 = Numerator / Denominator - M1

M2 = 9.22628607E+31

Therefore, the mass of the other star in the binary system (M2) is approximately 9.226 × 10³¹ kilograms.

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