To determine which statement is true, we can compare the masses of Saturn and Mercury.
The mass of Saturn is approximately \(6 \times 10^{26}\) kg, and the mass of Mercury is approximately \(3 \times 10^{23}\) kg.
To find how many times the mass of Saturn is compared to the mass of Mercury, we can divide the mass of Saturn by the mass of Mercury:
\[ \frac{\text{Mass of Saturn}}{\text{Mass of Mercury}} = \frac{6 \times 10^{26} \text{ kg}}{3 \times 10^{23} \text{ kg}} = \frac{6}{3} \times \frac{10^{26}}{10^{23}} = 2 \times 10^{3} = 2000 \]
This means that the mass of Saturn is approximately 2000 times the mass of Mercury.
Now we can evaluate the options:
A. The mass of Saturn is approximately two hundred times the mass of Mercury. (False)
B. The mass of Saturn is approximately two thousand times the mass of Mercury. (True)
C. The mass of Mercury is approximately two hundred times the mass of Saturn. (False)
D. The mass of Mercury is approximately two thousand times the mass of Saturn. (False)
The correct answer is:
B. The mass of Saturn is approximately two thousand times the mass of Mercury.