Question

A ball is dropped from a spacecraft revolving around the earth at a height of 120km. What will happen to the ball?

(a) It will go very far in the space

(b) It will move with the same speed tangentially to the spacecraft

(c) It will fall down to the earth gradually

(d) It will continue to move with the same speed along the original orbit of the spacecraft

This question was addressed to me in an online quiz.

My enquiry is from Orbital Velocity topic in section Kinetic Theory of Gases of Engineering Physics I

Answer 1

Right answer is (d) It will continue to move with the same speed along the original orbit of the spacecraft

Explanation: In the absence of external torque the ball will continue to move with the same speed along the original orbit of spacecraft.