Three stars, Star 1, Star 2, and Star 3, are at almost equal distances from Earth. The table below shows the masses of the three stars.
Name of Star Mass of Star (in million solar masses)
Star 1 3.61
Star 2 18.59
Star 3 11.73
Which of these best shows the stars in the decreasing order of the force with which Earth attracts them? (3 points)
Group of answer choices
Star 1→Star 2→Star 3
Star 2→Star 1→Star 3
Star 2→Star 3→Star 1
Star 3→Star 2→Star 1
Star 2→Star 3→Star 1
To determine the decreasing order of the force with which Earth attracts the stars, we need to consider Newton's law of universal gravitation. According to this law, the force of attraction between two objects is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.
Given the mass of each star, we can compare the forces of attraction. The higher the mass, the stronger the force of attraction.
From the provided information, the stars have the following masses (in million solar masses):
Star 1: 3.61
Star 2: 18.59
Star 3: 11.73
Comparing the masses, we can conclude that the decreasing order of the force with which Earth attracts the stars is:
Star 2 → Star 3 → Star 1
So the correct answer is Star 2 → Star 3 → Star 1.