Three identical stars of mass M are located at the vertices of an equilateral triangle with side L. At what speed must they move if they all revolve under the influence of one another’s gravity in a elliptic orbit circumscribing, while still preserving, the equilateral triangle?
Three identical stars of mass M are located at the vertices of an equilateral triangle with side L. At what speed must they move if they all revolve under the influence of one another’s gravity in a elliptic orbit circumscribing, while still preserving, the equilateral triangle?
Anindita Chakraborty , 7 Years ago
Grade 12th pass
Now, the necessary centripetal force is provided by the net force due to the three stars.Thus,
inside the equilateral triangle. The distance from the center of its orbit is given byOFrom the figure, the stars orbit about a point 
The position of the three stars which are located at the vertices of an equilateral triangle is shown below.
