What information is needed to calculate the gravitational force of an object?

Responses

the mass of the object subtracted from the distance between the object and the planet’s core

the mass of the object and the planet’s gravitational acceleration

the mass of the two objects

the distance between the two objects

1 answer

To calculate the gravitational force between two objects, you need:

  • The mass of the two objects
  • The distance between the two objects

The gravitational force can be calculated using Newton's law of universal gravitation, which is given by the formula:

\[ F = \frac{G \cdot m_1 \cdot m_2}{r^2} \]

where:

  • \( F \) is the gravitational force,
  • \( G \) is the gravitational constant,
  • \( m_1 \) and \( m_2 \) are the masses of the two objects, and
  • \( r \) is the distance between the centers of the two objects.

So, the correct response would be the mass of the two objects and the distance between the two objects.