Frequently Asked Questions On Gravitation

Force refers to the attraction or repulsion of things. In another perspective, force is the energy exerted to do some work. Force is of four types in the physical universe. Among the four different physical world forces, the gravitational force is the feeblest. Gravitational force, also known as gravitation, is the force of attraction that exists within the universal components. Though gravitation is a weak force, its activity holds the planetary entities together and determines their trajectories around their suns. Frequently asked questions on gravitation are given in ‘frequently asked questions on gravitation’ notes.

Gravitational force

The gravitational force is the weakest among all the four types of physical forces. It is the force that imposes on things with mass and energy to hold them together. Gravitation can be observed between the planets, stars, galaxies, etc; though gravity is a weak attraction, it extends for unbelievably long distances.

Newton’s law of gravity

• Newton has proposed the gravitational law, which states that every object in the universe or space attracts every other object present there.
• It defines gravitational force mathematically as a force that is proportional directly to the product of the masses of the objects and proportional indirectly to the square of their distance.
• The gravitational force formula is,

F = G [(m₁m₂) / r²] Where,

F is the gravitational force

G is the gravitational constant

M1 is the mass of the first object

M2 is the mass of the second object

R is the distance existing between the centre of the objects

Frequently asked questions on Gravitation

• Consider two objects with mass and energy attracted towards each other. What happens to the gravitational force between them when the mass of one body is doubled?

By substituting double times the mass of one object in the gravitation formula, it is inferred that when the mass of one object doubles, the gravitational force is also doubled.

• What is ‘G’ in the gravitational law formula?

‘G’ denotes the universal gravitational constant, which is also termed Newtonian gravitational constant.

• Why is gravity required?

• Though gravity is a weak force, it helps hold the things in and around this universe together.
• Gravity partially determines the nature of species on earth.

• What is the value of the gravitational constant?

The gravitational constant is constant throughout the world. The numerical value of the gravitational constant is G = 6.673 × 10-11 N m2 / kg2.

• What is the SI unit of gravity?

• Gravity is a force. Thus, the SI unit of gravity, just like any force, is N.
• The SI unit N refers to ‘Newton’.
• A simplified version of the SI unit Newton is Kg m/s2.

• Where is the gravity maximum on earth?

The gravitational pull is more towards the polar regions than the equator or any other surface of the earth.

• Why is the gravitational force more towards the poles than the equator?

• The distance between the core and the equator is greater than between the core and the poles.
• Thus, the poles face a heightened attraction than any other surface on the earth.

• Who invented the concept of Gravity?

Sir Isaac Newton was the one who proposed the concept of gravity.

• Does a falling object fall faster when it closes the ground?

• A falling object tends to increase its velocity at a constant acceleration when the distance between the object and the ground decreases.
• The initial velocity is zero, whereas while the object is falling, its velocity increases until there is an air disturbance.

• Do heavier things are attracted towards the ground faster while falling?

• No. Be it a heavier or lighter object, the gravitational pull does not increase the velocity of an object based on its mass.
• On falling, when there are no air disturbances, all the objects fall at the same velocity irrespective of their masses.

• What holds the moon, the earth’s natural satellite, in its orbit?

The gravitational force exerted by the earth on the Moon holds it in its orbit, uniformly revolving around the earth.

• What causes the tides to rise at a higher length?

We know that the gravitational force of earth holds the Moon. Similarly, the gravity of the Moon influences the tides to rise at greater heights during the full moon days.

•  Does the sun have any influence on the tides on the earth?

Like the moon, the sun also has its influence on the tides on the earth. The solar tides are half the height of the lunar ones.

• When does an object feel completely weightless?

An object feels no weight when the object is under free fall due to the sheer action of gravity.

• Why does an object reach down sooner on falling from a particular height in the poles?

• The gravity is at higher levels in the poles due to the lesser distance between the earth’s core and the polar region surfaces.
• Thus, a falling object tends to fall faster due to the high gravity at the poles.

• What is ‘g’?

• ‘g’ is the acceleration due to gravity.
• Acceleration of gravity is the increase in the velocity, that is, the gained acceleration,  of an object due to the gravitational force exerted on the object.
• ‘g’ is a constant on the earth’s surface at sea level.
• The numerical value of ‘g’ is 9.8 m/s2.

• What is the formula for the acceleration due to gravity?

• The acceleration due to gravity is indicated by ‘g’.
• The formula is

g = GM/r2, where

g is the acceleration due to gravity

G is the gravitational constant

M is the mass of the object

r is the earth’s radius.

• What happens to the gravitational force when the distance between two objects is doubled?

• According to the law of gravitation, the distance between the two objects is inversely proportional to the gravitational force.
• So, when the two objects move apart, the attraction between them also moves away.
• Thus, when the distance is doubled, the gravity is decreased four times.

Conclusion

In another perspective, force is the energy exerted to do some work. Force is of four types in the physical universe. Among the four different physical world forces, the gravitational force is the feeblest. Gravitational force, also known as gravitation, is the force of attraction that exists within the universal components. Though gravitation is a weak force, its activity holds the planetary entities together and determines their trajectories around their suns.  We have discussed some of the frequently asked question on this topic i this article.