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8.1 Solar system; stability of orbital motions; satellites

8.1 Solar system; stability of orbital motions; satellites

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Question 1
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The Sun is at the centre of our solar system.

a.

What type of object is the Sun?

[1]
b.

What is the name of the galaxy that our solar system is part of?

[1]
c.

Table 1 gives information about some of the moons in our solar system.

MoonRadius in kilometres
Ganymede263026302630
Triton135013501350
Phobos111111

What is a moon?

[1]
d.

A student researched the radius of some other objects in the solar system:

  • Radius of dwarf planet Pluto = 1190 km1190\text{ km}1190 km
  • Radius of planet Mercury = 2440 km2440\text{ km}2440 km

The student made the following conclusions:

  • Conclusion 1: Moons are always smaller than dwarf planets.
  • Conclusion 2: Planets are always larger than moons.

Give one reason why each of the student's conclusions is wrong. Use the data given above and in Table 1.

[2]
Markscheme

8.1 Solar system; stability of orbital motions; satellites Questions

  1. GCSE
  2. /Physics
  3. /8.1 Solar system; stability of orbital motions; satellites

19 exam-style questions on AQA GCSE Physics 8.1 Solar system; stability of orbital motions; satellites, covering 8.1.1 Our solar system, 8.1.2 The life cycle of a star, and 8.1.3 Orbital motion, natural and artificial satellites. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.

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