Question

the model below represents some information about lo and jupiter. orbits of lo and jupiter (not drawn to scale) 3 a student claims that the sun exerts a gravitational force on jupiter, but not on lo. indicate if you support or refute this claim using a checkmark (√). justify your choice using evidence form the orbits of lo and jupiter model and your scientific knowledge. support refute justification:

Explanation:

Gravitational force acts between any two masses. The Sun has a large mass. Jupiter is in orbit around the Sun, which implies the Sun's gravitational force on Jupiter keeps it in orbit. Io is part of the solar - system (as it orbits Jupiter which orbits the Sun). According to the law of universal gravitation (\(F = G\frac{m_1m_2}{r^{2}}\), where \(F\) is the gravitational force, \(G\) is the gravitational constant, \(m_1\) and \(m_2\) are the masses of two objects, and \(r\) is the distance between their centers), since Io has mass and is at a finite distance from the Sun, there must be a gravitational force exerted by the Sun on Io.

Answer:

• Refute
• Justification: Gravitational force acts between any two masses. The Sun has mass, Jupiter has mass, and Io has mass. The formula for gravitational force \(F = G\frac{m_1m_2}{r^{2}}\) shows that as long as \(m_1\) (Sun's mass), \(m_2\) (Io's mass) are non - zero and \(r\) (distance between Sun and Io) is finite (which it is, as Io is in the solar system), there is a gravitational force. Also, since Jupiter is in orbit around the Sun (due to Sun's gravitational pull on Jupiter), and Io is in orbit around Jupiter (but still within the Sun's gravitational influence range in the solar system), the claim is wrong.