Gravitation and Gravity

Gravitation and gravity are two very important concepts in physics. Though these two terms seem to be alike and people generally do consider them the same, there are some contrasts between gravity and gravitation. The latter is the force that acts between two bodies. Whereas the former is the force that occurs between one object and a very big body, such as a small object and the earth, gravitation can be mathematically presented as the force that is directly correspondent to the multiplication of the masses of both objects and is inversely correspondent to the square of the distance within those two objects. On the other hand, gravity is considered a natural phenomenon of the earth by which objects are attracted to the centre of the earth. 

Gravitation and Gravity: Difference

Every object exerts a gravitational force on another. This force, as mentioned earlier, depends on the mass of the objects. Gravity helps planets revolve around the sun. So, it can be concluded that gravity attracts different objects to the centre of the earth and it is universally accepted that gravity plays a major role in sustaining life on earth. The atmosphere is kept over the earth due to the gravitational pull between the earth and the sun. Gravitation is the force of attraction that occurs between any two objects in the universe. So, each object attracts each object, but the attractive force is very weak in nature, so it can’t be felt. But gravity’s range is infinite and it was first observed by the famous physicist Sir Isaac Newton. 

Gravitation can be an attractive or repulsive force, but gravity is always an attractive force. Gravitation is considered a universal force, but gravity is not considered a universal force. The way of gravitational force is along the radial direction of the masses. The direction of gravity is along the line joining the earth’s centre and the centre of the body. It always works towards the centre of the earth. The gravitational force is extremely weak in nature, but gravity is a powerful force.

Gravitational force is a vector physical quantity, and gravity force has its own vector field. The gravitational force will be zero when the distance between two objects is infinity. The force of gravity is zero at the centre of the earth. The gravitational force needs objects with two masses to work. But gravity needs only one mass. Actually, gravity is the weakest type of fundamental force in nature, but it still holds the entire universe together. It holds together the whole solar system and galaxies. The speed of free fall is considered the same all over the world. It is computed at 9.8 metres per second.

The term “weight” refers to the force by which the earth attracts any substance towards its centre. The gravitational force on the moon’s surface is 16% of the gravitational force on the earth’s surface. Black holes have the strongest gravity in the entire universe. The range of gravity is infinite. Not only Newton’s law but also Kepler’s law define gravity, and these two laws are considered the two most important components of gravitation. The gravitational force is independent of the nature of the medium.

So, the differences between gravitational force and gravity can be summarised as,

• Gravitation can be an attractive or repulsive force, but gravity is always an attractive force

• Gravitation is considered a universal force, but gravity is not considered a universal force

• The gravitational force always works along the radial direction from the masses, but gravity always works along the line joining the earth’s centre and the centre of the object; it always works towards the centre of the earth

• The gravitational force is very weak in nature, but gravity is very strong in nature

• A gravitational force is a vector physical quantity, but gravity does have its own vector field

• Two objects need two masses to apply a gravitational force, but gravity works between an object and the earth, so it needs one mass

• The gravitational force is zero when the distance between two objects is infinite and on the other hand, at the centre of the earth, gravity is zero

Conclusion

Gravitational force and gravity are both fundamental physics concepts. Though these two terms sound alike, they have significant differences. The attractive or repulsive force that acts between two objects is known as the gravitational force, and the force by which the earth attracts every object towards its centre is known as gravity.