Analytical solution of the problem of sphere rotation in a rarefied molecular gas

A problem of sphere rotation in a rarefied molecular gas is solved in an isothermal approximation. The particle velocity profile in the rarefied molecular gas entrained by the rotating sphere is obtained with a second-order correction in terms of the Knudsen number. For a rarefied molecular gas, in contrast to a monatomic gas, the particle velocity is demonstrated to depend substantially on the Prandtl number if rotational degrees of freedom of molecules are taken into account.