Acceleration Due to Gravity (g)

Understanding Acceleration Due to Gravity

The acceleration due to gravity, denoted as g, is the acceleration experienced by an object due to the gravitational pull of the Earth. It is a vector quantity, meaning it has both magnitude and direction.

On Earth, the average value of g is approximately 9.8 m/s², directed towards the center of the Earth.

Newton's Law of Gravitation

Newton's law of gravitation states that every point mass attracts every other point mass in the universe with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers.

The formula is given by:

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

• F is the gravitational force between the masses.
• G is the universal gravitational constant $(6.674 \times 10^{-11} \text{Nm}^2/\text{kg}^2)$.
• m₁ and m₂ are the masses of the objects.
• r is the distance between the centers of the two masses.

Gravitational Field Intensity

Gravitational field intensity, also known as gravitational field strength, is the force experienced by a unit mass placed in a gravitational field. It is equivalent to the acceleration due to gravity.

The formula for gravitational field intensity is:

$$g = \frac{F}{m}$$

• g is the gravitational field intensity (acceleration due to gravity).
• F is the gravitational force.
• m is the mass of the object experiencing the force.

Worked Example