Physics H - Unit 4: Universal Gravitation

inverse square law

A physical quantity varies inversely as another quantity squared.

What would happen to the force of gravity if you doubled your distance from the center of the earth?

The force would be 1/4 as big

If the Earth were twice as massive but remained the same size, what would happen to the value of G?

The value of G would remain the same

gravitational field

a force field that exists in the space around every mass or group of masses

Any object with mass creates a(n):

gravitational field

According to the law of universal gravitation, the force of gravitational attraction between two objects is directly proportional to the:

product of the objects' masses

According to the law of universal gravitation, the force of gravitational attraction between two objects is inversely proportional to the:

square of the separation distance between the two objects

space-time

the concepts of time and three-dimensional space regarded as fused in a four-dimensional continuum.

universal gravitational constant

the constant G in the equation for Newton's law of universal gravitation; measures the strength of gravity

The gravitational force of attraction between two objects depends on the Universal Gravitational Constant, G and what other 2 variables?

the distance between the objects and the masses of both objects

If a mass in Earth's gravitational field is doubled, what will happen to the force exerted by the field upon the mass?

the force exerted by the field upon it will double

Why don't we notice the gravitational fields created by all of the objects around us?

the gravitational fields of these objects are too weak to detect

Universal Law of Gravitation

the gravitational force between objects depends on their masses and decreases rapidly as the distance between the objects increase