- #1
kudoushinichi88
- 129
- 2
A solid sphere with radius r is placed on top of a thin disk with radius R. The contact point is the center of the disk. Both objects are uniform and have the same mass M. Calculate the gravitational potential energy of the system. Take the potential energy to be zero when the sphere and the disk are infinitely far apart.
The gravitational potential equation is of course,
[tex]U=\frac{GMm}{r}[/tex]
I know I have to do some integration here, but I am not sure how to cut up the two objects into small pieces. And I have a feeling that this might require a double integration...
Any hints on how to cut them up?
The gravitational potential equation is of course,
[tex]U=\frac{GMm}{r}[/tex]
I know I have to do some integration here, but I am not sure how to cut up the two objects into small pieces. And I have a feeling that this might require a double integration...
Any hints on how to cut them up?