The table shows the acceleration due to gravity on four different planets. What planet is a person standing on if the person has a mass of 85.0 kg and weighs 305 N?

Question

a
Mercury
b
Venus
c
Earth
d
Mars

Answer 1

To find out which planet the person is standing on, we can use the formula for weight, which is defined as:

$$\text{Weight}=\text{mass}\times \text{acceleration due to gravity}$$

Given:

• Mass = 85.0 kg
• Weight = 305 N

We can rearrange the formula to find the acceleration due to gravity (g) on that planet:

$$g=\frac{\text{Weight}}{\text{mass}}$$

Substituting the values:

$$g=\frac{305,\text{N}}{85.0,\text{kg}}\approx 3.59,{\text{m/s}}^2$$

Now we can compare this value with the known acceleration due to gravity on the four planets:

• Mercury: approximately 3.7 m/s²
• Venus: approximately 8.87 m/s²
• Earth: approximately 9.81 m/s²
• Mars: approximately 3.71 m/s²

Comparing the calculated value of approximately 3.59 m/s², it is closest to the value for Mars, which is approximately 3.71 m/s².

Thus, the person is most likely standing on:

d. Mars