In 1996, NASA performed an experiment called the Tethered Satellite experiment. In this experiment a 2.20 104-m length of wire was let out by the space shuttle Atlantis to generate a motional emf. The shuttle had an orbital speed of 7.50 103 m/s, and the magnitude of the earth's magnetic field at the location of the wire was 4.90 10-5 T. If the wire had moved perpendicular to the earth's magnetic field, what would have been the motional emf generated between the ends of the wire?
5.42x10-56
To calculate the motional emf generated between the ends of the wire, we can use Faraday's law of electromagnetic induction.
According to Faraday's law, the motional emf (ε) is given by the equation:
ε = -B*L*v
where:
ε is the motional emf,
B is the magnitude of the magnetic field,
L is the length of the wire, and
v is the velocity or speed of the wire.
In this case, we are given:
B = 4.90 x 10^-5 T (magnitude of the Earth's magnetic field),
L = 2.20 x 10^4 m (length of the wire), and
v = 7.50 x 10^3 m/s (orbital speed of the space shuttle).
We can now substitute these values into the equation:
ε = - (4.90 x 10^-5 T) * (2.20 x 10^4 m) * (7.50 x 10^3 m/s)
By performing the calculation, we get:
ε ≈ - 0.084 V
Therefore, the motional emf generated between the ends of the wire would be approximately -0.084 volts. The negative sign indicates that the direction of the induced emf will be opposite to the direction of motion of the wire.