Question

question 5
1 pts
when the apollo astronauts went to the moon, they weighed about one - sixth of what they weighed on earth because _________.
they lost a lot of weight during their journey to the moon
they were much farther from earth
the moons mass is less than the earths mass
the moons mass is greater than the earths mass

Explanation:

Weight is the force of gravity acting on an object. The formula for weight is \(W = mg\), where \(m\) is the mass of the object and \(g\) is the acceleration due to gravity. The acceleration due to gravity on a planet or moon depends on its mass (\(M\)) and radius (\(r\)) according to the formula \(g=\frac{GM}{r^{2}}\) (where \(G\) is the gravitational constant). The moon has a much smaller mass than the Earth. Since \(g_{moon}=\frac{1}{6}g_{earth}\) (because of the moon's smaller mass), an astronaut's weight (\(W = mg\)) on the moon is about one - sixth of their weight on Earth.

• The first option is incorrect because the astronauts' mass (the amount of matter in them) did not change during the journey. Weight is \(mg\), and if \(m\) (mass) doesn't change significantly in a short journey, the change in weight is not due to mass loss.
• The second option is incorrect. While the distance from Earth affects the gravitational pull of Earth on the astronauts, when they are on the moon, their weight is mainly determined by the moon's gravity, not the distance from Earth.
• The fourth option is incorrect because the moon's mass (\(M_{moon}=7.348\times 10^{22}\ kg\)) is much less than the Earth's mass (\(M_{earth}=5.972\times 10^{24}\ kg\)).

Answer:

the moon’s mass is less than the Earth’s mass