Spacecraft landing on an alien planet

AI Thread Summary
A spacecraft descending to land on an alien planet with gravity one-sixth that of Earth's must burn fuel at a constant rate to achieve a safe landing velocity of zero. The mass of the spacecraft decreases over time as fuel is consumed, described by the equation m = m0 - kt. The discussion involves applying principles of rocket motion to determine the timing for firing the spacecraft's engines. The key equation used relates the final and initial velocities, exhaust speed, and mass changes. The goal is to calculate the optimal altitude to begin firing the engines for a successful landing.
squarky
Messages
3
Reaction score
0

Homework Statement



A spacecraft of mass m0 is descending with velocity v0 to land on an alien plant where the value of g is 1/6 of g on the earth. In order to land safely (meaning the final velocity upon landing is zero), fuel has to be burnt at a constant rate dm/dt=-k, where k is a constant. How far above the surface of the planet should one begin firing the spacecraft (assume constant deceleration)

Homework Equations



m = m0 - kt

The Attempt at a Solution



I am trying to use my knowledge of rocket motion. But i am having a hard time picturing the problem. Any comment/help will be great.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
starting with
v - v0 = vexln(m0/m)

where,
v= final velocity
v0 = initial velocity
vex= exhaust speed relative to spacecraft
m0= initial mass
m = final mass

because final velocity has to be zero and assuming constant exhaust speed, i simplified the above expression to get t.

t = m0(e-v/vex -1)/ke-v0/vex
 
I multiplied the values first without the error limit. Got 19.38. rounded it off to 2 significant figures since the given data has 2 significant figures. So = 19. For error I used the above formula. It comes out about 1.48. Now my question is. Should I write the answer as 19±1.5 (rounding 1.48 to 2 significant figures) OR should I write it as 19±1. So in short, should the error have same number of significant figures as the mean value or should it have the same number of decimal places as...
Thread 'A cylinder connected to a hanging mass'
Let's declare that for the cylinder, mass = M = 10 kg Radius = R = 4 m For the wall and the floor, Friction coeff = ##\mu## = 0.5 For the hanging mass, mass = m = 11 kg First, we divide the force according to their respective plane (x and y thing, correct me if I'm wrong) and according to which, cylinder or the hanging mass, they're working on. Force on the hanging mass $$mg - T = ma$$ Force(Cylinder) on y $$N_f + f_w - Mg = 0$$ Force(Cylinder) on x $$T + f_f - N_w = Ma$$ There's also...
Back
Top