Determine the magnitude of the force of gravity acting on a 340 kg satellite, 850 km above Earth's surface

To determine the magnitude of the force of gravity acting on the satellite, you can use the universal law of gravitation formula:

F = (G * m1 * m2) / r^2

where:
F is the magnitude of the force of gravity,
G is the gravitational constant (approximately 6.67430 × 10^-11 N m^2/kg^2),
m1 and m2 are the masses of the two objects (in this case, the satellite and the Earth),
and r is the distance between the centers of the two objects (in this case, the distance between the satellite and the Earth's surface plus the Earth's radius).

First, let's find the mass of the Earth. The mass of the Earth is approximately 5.972 × 10^24 kg.

Next, let's calculate the distance between the satellite and the center of the Earth. Since the satellite is 850 km above Earth's surface, we need to add the radius of the Earth to this distance. The radius of the Earth is approximately 6,371 km, which is equivalent to 6,371,000 meters.

The distance (r) between the satellite and the center of the Earth is:

r = 850,000 meters + 6,371,000 meters

Now we have all the necessary values to calculate the force of gravity:

F = (6.67430 × 10^-11 N m^2/kg^2 * 340 kg * 5.972 × 10^24 kg) / (r)^2

After substituting the values, you can calculate the magnitude of the force of gravity acting on the satellite.