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To alleviate the traffic congestion between two cities such as Boston and Washington, D.C, engineers have proposed building a rail tunnel along a chord line connecting the cities (Fig. 13-55). A train, unpropelled by any engine and starting from rest, would fall through the first half of the tunnel and then move up the second half. Assuming Earth is a uniform sphere and ignoring air drag and friction, find the city-to-city travel time.

Short Answer

Expert verified

Answer:

The travel time required from Boston to Washington DC is 42.1 min.

Step by step solution

01

Listing the given quantities

Earth is uniform sphere and ignoring air drag and friction

02

Understanding the concept of gravitational force

The gravitational force at a radial distance r inside Earth (e.g., point A in the figure)

Formula:

Fg=GMmR3r

03

Calculation of the required time

The component of the force along the tunnel is

Fx=Fgsinθ=(-GMmR3r)xr=(GMmR3)x

This can be rewritten as

ax=d2xdt2-GMR3x=-Ó¬2x

Where,Ӭ2=GMR3. The equation is similar to Hooke’s law, in that the force on the train is proportional to the displacement of the train but oppositely directed. Without exiting the tunnel, the motion of the train would be periodic would a period given byT=2πӬ. The travel time required from Boston to Washington DC is only half that (one-way):

Δt=T2=πӬ=πR3GM=π(6.37×106 m)3(6.67×10-11 m3/kg.s2)(5.98×1024kg)=2529 s=42.1  min

The travel time required from Boston to Washington DC is 42.1 min.

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