Physics: Gravitation and Centripetal Force

Gravitation

• Gravitation is an unseen force of attraction that attracts everything towards the Earth.
• The force that causes acceleration and keeps the body moving along the circular path is called the centripetal force, also known as the centre-seeking force.

Law of Gravitation

• Every object in the universe attracts every other object with a force proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.
• This is known as the law of gravitation or universal law of gravitation.

Gravitational Force

• The gravitational force between two uniform objects is directed along the line joining their centres.
• The force of attraction (F) between two masses (M) and (m) separated by a distance (d) is given by the equation: F = GMm / d^2, where G is the universal gravitational constant.
• The value of G is 6.67 × 10^-11 Nm^2/kg^2.

Importance of Universal Law of Gravitation

• The force that binds us to the Earth
• The motion of the moon around the Earth
• The motion of planets around the Sun
• The tides due to the moon and the Sun

Free Fall and Acceleration Due to Gravity

• When an object falls from a height under the influence of gravitational force, it is known as free fall.
• The acceleration involved when an object falls towards the Earth is called the acceleration due to gravity (g).
• The unit of g is m/s^2, and its mathematical expression is: g = GM / R^2.
• The value of acceleration due to gravity on Earth is 9.8 m/s^2.

Mass

• The mass of a body is the quantity of matter contained in it.
• Mass is a scalar quantity with only magnitude but no direction.

Learn about the concept of gravitation, gravitational pull, and centripetal force. Understand how objects attract each other and the forces that keep them moving in circular paths.