Where is the center of mass and black hole in this space system?

AI Thread Summary
The discussion focuses on determining the center of mass of a space system containing a blue giant star, a red dwarf star, and a black hole. The blue giant has a mass of 11M and is located at coordinates (700, 0), while the red dwarf, with a mass of 0.5M, is at (800, -200). The black hole, with a mass of 2M, is also part of the system, but its location remains unknown. Participants discuss using algebra, trigonometry, and the center of mass equation to find the system's center of mass and the black hole's position. Additionally, there is a note about the importance of maintaining unique threads for different topics.
Ertosthnes
Messages
49
Reaction score
0
A space system consists of two visible stars, one is a blue giant with a mass of 11M and the other is a red dwarf with a mass of 0.5M. The system also has a black hole with a mass of 2M but we don't know where it is located. The blue giant is 700 gigameters away from you along the x-axis and the red dwarf is 825 gigameters away from you 14 degrees below the x axis. The blue giant is moving in the +y direction and the dwarf moves 45 degrees clockwise of the +y direction.

We're looking for the system's center of mass, and the location of the black hole.

We also assume the following about the system:
1) Orbits are approximately circular about the system's center of mass
2) All lie in the same plane
3) All orbit in the same direction (e.g., clockwise or counterclockwise)

The relevant equations are uses of algebra, trigonometry, and the center of mass equation, as far as I can tell.

So far I've mapped out the locations of the two planets; the blue giant's coordinates are (700, 0) and the red dwarf's coordinates are (800,-200). I have no idea how to continue.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
If we can assume that the orbits are circular, what does this tell you about the direction of the velocity of the bodies in relation to the circular path?
 
The direction should be perpendicular.
 
I thought this post looked familiar ... and, yep, its exactly the same as this thread (less the replies). Ertosthnes, you aren't supposed to create multiple threads with the exact same topic.
 
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