The rocket is traveling in free flight along an elliptical trajectory A'A .The planet has no atmosphere, and its mass is k times that of the earth’s. The rocket has an apoapsis and periapsis as shown in the figure. If the rocket is to land on the surface of the planet, determine the required free-flight speed it must have at A' so that it strikes the planet at B. How long does it take for the rocket to land, going from A' to B along an elliptical path?

Transcribed Image Text:

Units used: Mm = Given: 10³ km k = 0.70 a = 6 Mm b = 9 Mm r = 3 Mm Me = 5.976 x 1024 kg G = 6.673 × 10 11 N. m kg A B A'