Use the table to answer the question. Planet Estimated Mass of Planet (1024 kg) Venus 4.87 Mars 0.642 Jupiter 1,898.0 Neptune 102.0 A spacecraft flies within 500,000 km of each of these planets. Based on its mass, which planet would gravitationally attract the spacecraft the least? (1 point) Responses Jupiter Jupiter Neptune Neptune Venus Venus Mars Mars Skip to navigation

1 answer

The gravitational attraction of a planet on an object is directly related to its mass. The less massive a planet is, the weaker its gravitational pull will be on a nearby object.

From the information provided:

  • Venus: 4.87 × 10^24 kg
  • Mars: 0.642 × 10^24 kg
  • Jupiter: 1,898.0 × 10^24 kg
  • Neptune: 102.0 × 10^24 kg

Among these planets, Mars has the smallest mass (0.642 × 10^24 kg). This means that Mars would gravitationally attract the spacecraft the least when it flies within 500,000 km of each planet.

Therefore, the correct response is Mars.