NVK3L EXAMPLE 1

Consider two stars, one of 10 solar masses and another of 6 solar masses, in a binary system. It takes one star 2 years to orbit the common center of mass. What is the semi-major axis of this star's orbit?

STEP 1

The first step is always to write out the data. Find the information in the problem, and write it out. You don't need to look up anything! When you finish that, click here to move on to Step 2.

Updated 8/27/99

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