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3.3 Gravitational Force

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What is Gravity?

Gravitational force is one of the four fundamental forces of nature. It's the attractive force between two objects with mass (massive objects). Newton’s Law of Universal Gravity gives an equation for the gravitational force.

∣Fg∣=GMmr2|F_g|=G \frac{Mm}{r^2}
  • Fg{F_g} is the force of gravity between the 2 objects
  • M{M} is the mass of the first object
  • m{m} is the mass of the second object
  • r{r} is the distance between the center of mass of the 2 objects
  • G{G} is the Gravitational Constant, equal to 6.67∗10−11Nm2kg2{6.67*10^{-11} \frac{Nm^2}{kg^2}}

From this equation, you can see that as 2 objects increase in mass, the stronger the gravitational force will be. Also, if the distance between the 2 masses increases, the force will decrease by a square of that factor.

In this unit

8 lessons

  1. 3.1What is a Force?Preview lesson
  2. 3.2Newton's LawsPreview lesson
  3. 3.3Gravitational ForceThis lesson
  4. 3.4FrictionPreview lesson
  5. 3.5SystemsPreview lesson
  6. 3.6Inclined PlanesPreview lesson
  7. 3.7Tensions & Pulley SystemsPreview lesson
  8. 3.8SpringsPreview lesson

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