The force of gravity between two objects is defined by Newton's law of gravitation, which states:
\[ F = \frac{G \cdot m_1 \cdot m_2}{r^2} \]
where:
- \( F \) is the force of gravity,
- \( G \) is the gravitational constant,
- \( m_1 \) and \( m_2 \) are the masses of the two objects (in this case, the planet and the Sun),
- \( r \) is the distance between the centers of the two objects.
If the mass of the planet is cut in half, the equation becomes:
\[ F' = \frac{G \cdot (m_1/2) \cdot m_2}{r^2} \]
This shows that the new gravitational force \( F' \) would be half of the original force \( F \):
\[ F' = \frac{1}{2} F \]
Therefore, the force of gravity would decrease.
The correct response is: The force of gravity would decrease.