Gravitational Force, Orbit,

and Weight
 What is Gravity?
 Gravity is a force that exists
between all masses attracting
them to one another.
 Albert Einstein’s General
Theory of General Relativity
proposes that gravity arises
from the “warping” of space
and time.
 Explaining the “warping” of
space and time is beyond this
class, but will be discussed more
2nd Semester.
 Experimentation has confirmed
many of the predictions made by
Einstein’s theory.
 Early Thinking About
Gravity
 Issac Newton used the ideas of scientists
Galileo and Kepler when developing his own
ideas about gravity.
 Newton isn’t famous because he got hit in the
head with an apple (no one knows for sure if
that really happened). One reason Newton is
famous because he wondered why the MOON
didn’t fall to the Earth like an apple falls to
Earth.
 So…is the Moon Falling?
 Newton realized that if the moon did not fall, it
would move off in a straight line and leave its
orbit. Newton’s idea was that the moon must be
falling around Earth.
 The moon is pulled to the earth, but is also
moving with it’s own velocity. The resultant of
the two vectors creates a curved path. The
moon is simply a projectile circling Earth under
the attraction of gravity.
 Circular and Elliptical
Orbits
 Draw the velocity and force
vectors for circular and elliptical
orbits, and then fill in the blanks in
the paragraph..
 Objects Falling on Earth
 Any object falling back
to Earth accelerates
due to gravity.
g=9.8m/s2
 Objects experience
“free fall” if they are
affected by only gravity
(ignore air resistance
and other forces).
 All objects experiencing
free fall will fall to Earth
at the same rate.
 Video Clip
 Hammer and
Feather Drop on
Moon
 http://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=5C5_
dOEyAfk
 What if air resistance is
present?
 The upward force of air resistance
will eventually balance the falling
object’s weight, and acceleration
becomes zero.
 In other words, you can only fall so
fast. You won’t keep falling faster and
faster forever.
 When acceleration becomes zero
the object is said to have reached
terminal velocity.
 The terminal velocity of this
skydiver is about 124 mph (200
 What exactly did Newton
Discover?
 Newton did not
“discover” gravity.
 Newton discovered that
gravity is universal.
 Everything pulls on
everything else in the
universe, and is
influenced by mass and
distance.
 Law of Universal
 Gravitation
Law of Universal Gravitation =
Every object attracts every
other object with a force. For
any two objects, this force is
directly proportional to the
mass of each object. The
greater the masses, the
greater the force of attraction
between them.
 Fgrav= Gravitational Force (N)
 G = 6.67 x 10-11 N-m2/kg2
 m1 = mass #1 (kg)
 m2 = mass #2 (kg)
 d = distance between the centers
of the objects (m)
 Practice Problem Together
 Determine the force of gravitational attraction
between the earth (m = 5.98 x 1024 kg) and a 70-kg
physics student if the student is standing at sea
level, a distance of 6.38 x 106 m from earth's
center.
 G: m1 = 5.98 x 1024 kg
 m2 = 70 kg
 d = 6.38 x 106 m
 G = 6.67 x 10-11 N-m2/kg2
 U: Fgrav = ?
 E:
 S:
 S:
Practice Problem – You & A Partner

Try!
Determine the force of gravitational attraction
between the earth (m = 5.98 x 1024 kg) and a
70-kg physics student if the student is in an
airplane at 40000 feet above earth's surface.
This would place the student a distance of
6.39 x 106 m from earth's center.
 G: m1 = 5.98 x 1024 kg
 m2 = 70 kg
 d = 6.39 x 106 m
 G = 6.67 x 10-11 N-m2/kg2
 U: Fgrav = ?
 E:
 S:
 S:
 The Effect of Mass and
Distance on Fgrav
 Mass and Fgrav are
Directly
Proportional.
 As mass increases,
Fgrav increases. As
mass decreases,
Fgrav decreases.
 Distance and Fgrav
are Inversely
Proportional.
 As distance
increases, Fgrav
decreases.
 Practice Problem – By
 Yourself
Which would have a greater
Fgrav?
 Mercury or Venus – both at same
distance from the sun?
 Jupiter or Neptune – both at the
same distance from the sun?
 Earth’s current location or Earth
moved to Saturn’s location?
 Sun & Mercury or Saturn &
Jupiter?
 The Effect of Gravity on

Objects
We sense gravitation
only when masses like
that of Earth are
involved.
 The force of attraction
between you and your
classmates is too weak
to notice (but it’s
there!)
 The force of attraction
between you and Earth,
however, is easy to
notice. It is your
 Weight vs. Mass
 Mass = a measure of
the amount of
matter in an object.
Measured with a
balance in grams.
 Weight = a measure
of the amount of
force on and object.
Measured with a
spring scale in
Newtons.
 Gizmo: Weight vs. Mass
 How do mass and weight change (or not
change) on different planets?
 Calculating Weight
 Weight (N) = mass (kg) x
force due to gravity (m/s2)
 w=mxg
 Force on Earth = 9.8 m/s2 w
 Force on the Moon = 1.6

m g
m/s2
 Force on Jupiter = 24.79
m/s2
 Practice Problem -
Together
 What is the weight of a 50kg object on
Earth?
 Given?
• m = 50kg
• Earth’s gravity g = 9.8m/s2 w
 Unknown?
• w=?
 Equation m g
• w = mg
 Substitute
• w = 50kg x 9.8m/s2
 Solve
• w = 490 N
Practice Problem – You & A Partner Try!
 What is the weight of a 50kg object on
the Moon?
 Given?
• m = 50kg
• Moon’s gravity g = 1.6m/s2 w
 Unknown?
• w=?
 Equation m g
• w = mg
 Substitute
• w = 50kg x 1.6m/s2
 Solve
• w = 80 N
 Practice Problem – You Try!
 An object on Jupiter has a weight
1239.5N. What is the mass of the
object?
 Given?
• w = 1239.5N w
• Jupiter’s gravity g = 24.79m/s2
 Unknown?
• m=? m g
 Equation
• m = w/g
 Substitute
• m = 1239.5N/24.79 m/s2
 Solve