Problem Statement
Find the work done by the gravitational force when a particle of mass m moves from the surface of Earth to infinity.
Given Information
- All numerical data are stated in the problem above; symbols are defined as they appear.
Physical Concepts & Formulas
These problems use Newton’s law of gravitation together with the dynamics of orbital and central motion. (Work done BY gravity is negative when moving away — external agent does positive work.).
- $F = G\dfrac{m_1 m_2}{r^2}$ — law of universal gravitation
- $v = \sqrt{\dfrac{GM}{r}}$ — circular orbital speed
- $T^2 = \dfrac{4\pi^2 r^3}{GM}$ — Kepler’s third law
Step-by-Step Solution
Step 1 — Identify the governing principle: We begin by recognising which physical law controls the situation and why it is the correct starting point for this problem.
$$U(r) = -GM_Em/r$$
Step 2 — Set up the relevant equations: Next we write down the equations that follow from that principle, introducing the symbols we will carry through the algebra.
$$W_gravity = U_initial – U_final = -GM_Em/R_E – 0 = -GM_Em/R_E$$
Step 3 — Apply the given conditions: We now substitute the specific conditions and constraints given in the problem so the equations describe this particular situation.
$$Work done by external force to lift to ∞: W_ext = +GM_Em/R_E$$
Worked Calculation
$$W_gravity = -GM_Em/R_E$$
$$W_external = +GM_Em/R_E$$
Answer
$$\boxed{W_external = GM_Em/R_E = \text{mg}R_E (for uniform g approximation)}$$
This is the quantity the problem asked for, expressed in terms of the given data: $W_external = GM_Em/R_E = \text{mg}R_E (for uniform g approximation)$.
Physical Interpretation
This is the binding energy of the mass to Earth’s surface — exactly what you must supply to send an object to infinite distance from rest. The magnitude of the answer is consistent with everyday physical experience for this class of problem in Irodov’s Part 1 — the result shows how the answer scales with the given quantities. If we doubled the dominant input, the boxed formula tells us exactly how the output would respond, and that scaling is the key physical insight this problem trains. Comparing the answer with the appropriate limiting cases (very small or very large values of the dominant parameter) recovers the familiar Newtonian or intuitive expectation, which is a useful sanity check.
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