Formulas
What is Newton’s Law of Gravitation?
This formula, F = -GMm/r^2 , represents the gravitational force between two masses.
What is gravity?
A universal attractive force acting between all masses.
The period of a geosynchronous orbit matches this length of time.
one day
Who is Isaac Newton?
This scientist formulated the Law of Universal Gravitation.
What is about 8 minutes?
If the Sun suddenly vanished, it would take this amount of time for Earth to stop feeling its gravitational pull.
What is gravitational field strength?
g = GM\r^2 is used to calculate this property of a gravitational field.
What is a gravitational field?
A region where any mass experiences a force due to gravity
What are potential energy and kinetic energy?
The energy difference between a low and high orbit lies in these two types of energy.
: The constant G was first measured accurately by this 18th-century physicist.
Henry Cavendish
What is one-sixth?
On the Moon, your weight would be approximately this fraction of your weight on Earth.
What is gravitational potential?
The equation V = -GM\r calculates this quantity in a gravitational field.
What is an equipotential surface?
A surface where every point has the same gravitational potential.
What is centripetal force?
To maintain a circular orbit, this force keeps the satellite moving along its path.
The concept of gravitational fields was first formalized as part of this larger theory in the 17th century.
Newtonian mechanics
What is spaghettification?
If you fell into a black hole, you’d be stretched into a long, thin shape in this process, often nicknamed after an Italian dish.
What is gravitational potential energy?
This formula, E = -GMm\r , is used to determine the energy of a mass in a gravitational field.
What is gravitational potential?
: The amount of work done per unit mass to move an object from infinity to a point in a gravitational field.
What is the orbital velocity formula?
This equation, v = ^GM/r , calculates a satellite’s speed in orbit.
The realization that gravity also applies to celestial bodies came with the study of this planet’s motion.
Jupiter
What is the importance Leaning Tower of Pisa
This famous tower was used by Galileo in an experiment to prove objects of different masses fall at the same rate.
What is Kepler’s Third Law?
The relationship T^2 <> r^3 is a fundamental aspect of this scientist’s law.
What is the universal gravitational constant, G ?
gravitational force acting between two bodies of unit mass, kept at a unit distance from each other
What is at the farthest point or apogee?
A satellite’s gravitational potential energy is greatest at this point in its orbit.
What is General Relativity?
This concept of gravity was redefined as the curvature of spacetime in the 20th century.
What is dark matter?
Scientists estimate that the gravitational pull of this mysterious substance makes up about 27% of the universe’s mass-energy content.