Vocab
Centripetal Acceleration
An acceleration towards the center of a circle
Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation
Every mass attracts every other mass (Example: Earth pulls you downward with gravity, and you also pull Earth upward—but Earth’s mass is so large you don’t notice it)
If an object moves in a circle, in what direction is it accelerating?
Inwards, toward the center of the circle
Horizontal Velocity
The component of a projectile's velocity that remains constant because there is no horizontal acceleration (ax=0)
Projectile
An object that is thrown or launched and then moves only under the force of gravity (Example: A ball kicked into the air follows a curved path is a projectile)
Vertical Velocity
The component of a projectile's velocity that changes uniformly due to the acceleration of gravity (ay=−9.8 m/s^2)
Trajectory
The parabolic path or arc that a projectile follows through the air
Inverse-Square Law
A relationship where a value (like gravity) decreases based on the square of the distance (r2) rather than just the distance (r)
Would the mass of an object affect its trajectory?
No
Gravitational Constant (G)
A precise value (6.67×10−11 N⋅m2/kg2) first calculated by Henry Cavendish, used to determine the strength of gravitational attraction