A neutron star has 10 km radius and rotation period 1.2 s What's the centripetal acceleration on its surface at the equator?
a=w^2 * r=(2pi/1.2)^2 *1E4
To determine the centripetal acceleration on the surface of a neutron star at the equator, we can use the formula for centripetal acceleration:
a = ω²r
where a is the centripetal acceleration, ω is the angular velocity, and r is the radius.
Given that the radius of the neutron star is 10 km (which is equal to 10,000 meters) and the rotation period is 1.2 seconds, we can first calculate the angular velocity:
ω = 2π / T
Where T is the rotation period.
ω = 2π / 1.2s
≈ 5.24 rad/s
Next, we can substitute the values into the centripetal acceleration formula:
a = (5.24 rad/s)² × 10,000 m
≈ 274,576 m/s²
Therefore, the centripetal acceleration on the surface of the neutron star at the equator is approximately 274,576 m/s².