The gravitational force between two objects is given by Newton's law of universal gravitation, which states that the force (F) is proportional to the product of the masses of the two objects and inversely proportional to the square of the distance (r) between their centers:
\[ F = G \frac{m_1 m_2}{r^2} \]
Where:
- \( F \) is the gravitational force,
- \( G \) is the gravitational constant,
- \( m_1 \) and \( m_2 \) are the masses of the two objects (in this case, the Earth and the Sun),
- \( r \) is the distance between the centers of the two objects.
If the mass of the Sun triples, the equation becomes:
\[ F' = G \frac{(3m_{Sun}) m_{Earth}}{r^2} \]
Thus, the new force (\( F' \)) would be three times the original force (\( F \)), since only the mass of the Sun has changed. Therefore, the correct response is:
The force would be tripled.
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