SECTION 2

Objectives
Newton’s Law of
Universal Gravitation
Explain how Newton’s law of
universal gravitation accounts
for various phenomena, including
satellite and planetary orbits,
falling objects, and the tides. Key Term
gravitational force
Apply Newton’s law of universal
gravitation to solve problems.
Gravitational Force
Earth and many of the other planets in our solar system travel in nearly
circular orbits around the sun. Thus, a centripetal force must keep them
in orbit. One of Isaac Newton’s great achievements was the realization
that the centripetal force that holds the planets in orbit is the very same
gravitational force the mutual force force that pulls an apple toward the ground—gravitational force.
of attraction between particles of matter

Orbiting objects are in free fall.

To see how this idea is true, we can use a thought experiment that Newton
developed. Consider a cannon sitting on a high mountaintop, as shown in
Figure 2.1. The path of each cannonball is a parabola, and the horizontal
distance that each cannonball covers increases as the cannonball’s initial
speed increases. Newton realized that if an object were projected at just
the right speed, the object would fall down toward Earth in just the same
way that Earth curved out from under it. In other words, it would orbit
Earth. In this case, the gravitational force between the cannonball and
Earth is a centripetal force that keeps the cannonball in orbit. Satellites
stay in orbit for this same reason. Thus, the force that pulls an apple
toward Earth is the same force that keeps the moon and other satellites in
orbit around Earth. Similarly, a gravitational attraction between Earth and
our sun keeps Earth in its orbit around the sun.

FIGURE 2.1

Newton’s Thought Experiment

Each successive cannonball has a greater
initial speed, so the horizontal distance
that the ball travels increases. If the initial
speed is great enough, the curvature of
Earth will cause the cannonball to continue
falling without ever landing.

232 Chapter 7
Gravitational force depends on the masses and the distance.
Newton developed the following equation to describe quantitatively
the magnitude of the gravitational force if distance r separates masses
m1 and m2 :

Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation

m1m2
Fg = G _
r2
mass 1 × mass 2
gravitational force = constant × ___
(distance between masses)2

G is called the constant of universal gravitation. The value of G was

unknown in Newton’s day, but experiments have since determined the
value to be as follows:
G = 6.673 × 10−11 _ N•m2
kg2
Newton demonstrated that the gravitational force that a spherical
mass exerts on a particle outside the sphere would be the same if the
entire mass of the sphere were concentrated at the sphere’s center. When
calculating the gravitational force between Earth and our sun, for exam-
ple, you use the distance between their centers.

Gravitational force acts between all masses.

Gravitational force always attracts objects to one another, as shown in
Figure 2.2. The force that the moon exerts on Earth is equal and opposite to
the force that Earth exerts on the moon. This relationship is an example of
Newton’s third law of motion. Note that the gravitational forces shown in
Figure 2.2 are centripetal forces. Also, note that the gravitational force
shown in Figure 2.2 that acts on the moon is the centripetal force that
causes the moon to move in its almost circular path around Earth. The
centripetal force on Earth, however, is less obvious, because Earth is FIGURE 2.2
much more massive than the moon. Rather than orbiting the moon, Earth Gravitational Force The gravitational
moves in a small circular path around a point inside Earth. force attracts Earth and the moon to each
Gravitational force exists between any two masses, regardless of size. other. According to Newton’s third law,
For instance, desks in a classroom have a mutual attraction because of FEm = −FmE.
gravitational force. The force between the desks, however, is negligibly
small relative to the force between each desk and Earth because of the
differences in mass.
If gravitational force acts between all masses, why
FEm = Fc
doesn’t Earth accelerate up toward a falling
apple? In fact, it does! But Earth’s acceleration
is so tiny that you cannot detect it. Because FmE = Fc
Earth’s mass is so large and acceleration is
inversely proportional to mass, the Earth’s
acceleration is negligible. The apple has a
much smaller mass and thus a much greater
acceleration.

Circular Motion and Gravitation 233

 GO ONLINE

Gravitational Force Interactive Demo

HMHScience.com
Sample Problem C The sun has a mass of 2.0 × 1030 kg and
a radius of 7.0 × 105 km. What mass must be located at the sun’s
surface for a gravitational force of 470 N to exist between the mass
and the sun?

ANALYZE Given: m1 = 2.0 × 1030 kg

r = 7.0 × 105 km =7.0 × 108 m
G = 6.673 × 10-11 N·m2/kg2
Fg = 470 N
Unknown: m2 = ?

SOLVE Use Newton’s universal law of gravitation, and rearrange it to solve for the
second mass.

m 1m 2
Fg = G _
r2
Fg r2 (470 N)(7.0 × 108 m)2
m2 = _ = ____

( )
G m1 N·m2 (2.0 × 1030 kg)
6.673 ×10-11 _
kg2
m2 = 1.7 kg

1. The passenger liners Carnival Destiny and Grand Princess have a mass of about
1.0 × 108 kg each. How far apart must these two ships be to exert a gravitational
attraction of 1.0 × 10-3 N on each other?

2. Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system, has a mass 318 times that of Earth
and a volume that is 1323 times greater than Earth’s. Calculate the magnitude of
the gravitational force exerted on a 50.0 kg mass on Jupiter’s surface.

3. Predict the magnitude of the gravitational force a 66.5 kg person would experience
while standing on the surface of each of the following celestial bodies:

Celestial Body Mass Radius

a. Earth 5.97 × 1024 kg 6.38 × 106 m

b. Mars 6.42 × 1023 kg 3.40 × 106 m

c. Pluto 1.25 × 1022 kg 1.20 × 106 m

234 Chapter 7
 Applying the Law of Gravitation
For about six hours, water slowly rises along the shoreline of many
coastal areas and culminates in a high tide. The water level then slowly
lowers for about six hours and returns to a low tide. This cycle then
repeats. Tides take place in all bodies of water but are most noticeable
along seacoasts. In the Bay of Fundy, shown in Figure 2.3, the water rises
as much as 16 m from its low point. Because a high tide happens about
every 12 hours, there are usually two high tides and two low tides each
day. Before Newton developed the law of universal gravitation, no one
Did YOU Know? could explain why tides occur in this pattern.
When the sun and moon are in line,
the combined effect produces a Newton’s law of gravitation accounts for ocean tides.
greater-than-usual high tide called a
spring tide. When the sun and moon High and low tides are partly due to the gravitational force exerted on Earth
are at right angles, the result is a by its moon. The tides result from the difference between the gravitational
lower-than-normal high tide called force at Earth’s surface and at Earth’s center. A full explanation is beyond the
a neap tide. During each revolution of scope of this text, but we will briefly examine this relationship.
the moon around Earth, there are two
The two high tides take place at locations on Earth that are nearly in
spring tides and two neap tides.
line with the moon. On the side of Earth that is nearest to the moon, the
moon’s gravitational force is greater than it is at Earth’s center (because
gravitational force decreases with distance). The water is pulled toward
the moon, creating an outward bulge. On the opposite side of Earth, the
gravitational force is less than it is at the center. On this side, all mass is
still pulled toward the moon, but the water is pulled least. This creates
another outward bulge. Two high tides take place each day at a given
point because when Earth rotates one full time, that point will pass
through both bulges.
The moon’s gravitational force is not the only factor that affects ocean
tides. Other influencing factors include the depths of the ocean basins,
Earth’s tilt and rotation, and friction between the ocean water and the
FIGURE 2.3 ocean floor. The sun also contributes to Earth’s ocean tides, but the sun’s

(bl) ©Andrew J. Martinez/Photo Researchers, Inc. (br) ©Andrew J. Martinez/Photo Researchers, Inc.
effect is not as significant as the moon’s is. Although the sun exerts a
High and Low Tides Some of
the world’s highest tides occur at the
much greater gravitational force on Earth than the moon does, the
Bay of Fundy, which is between New difference between the force on the far and near sides of Earth is what
Brunswick and Nova Scotia, Canada. affects the tides.
These photographs show a river outlet to
the Bay of Fundy at low and high tide.

236 Chapter 7
FIGURE 2.4

Gravity Experiment Henry Cavendish used an

experiment similar to this one to determine the value of G.

(a) (a) (b) (b)

Mirror
Mirror

Light
Light
source
source

Cavendish finds the value of G and Earth’s mass.

In 1798, Henry Cavendish conducted an experiment that determined
the value of the constant G. This experiment is illustrated in Figure 2.4.
As shown in Figure 2.4(a), two small spheres are fixed to the ends of a
suspended light rod. These two small spheres are attracted to two larger MATERIALS
spheres by the gravitational force, as shown in Figure 2.4(b). The angle of • spring scale
rotation is measured with a light beam and is then used to determine • hook (of a known mass)
the gravitational force between the spheres. When the masses, the • various masses
distance between them, and the gravitational force are known,
Newton’s law of universal gravitation can be used to find G. Once the GRAVITATIONAL FIELD
value of G is known, the law can be used again to find Earth’s mass. STRENGTH
You can attach a mass to a
spring scale to find the gravita-
Gravity is a field force. tional force that is acting on
Newton was not able to explain how objects can exert forces on one another that mass. Attach various
without coming into contact. His mathematical theory described gravity but combinations of masses to the
didn’t explain how it worked. Later work also showed that Newton’s laws are hook, and record the force in
not accurate for very small objects or for those moving near the speed of each case. Use your data to
light. Scientists later developed a theory of fields to explain how gravity and calculate the gravitational field
other field forces operate. According to this theory, masses create a gravita- strength for each trial
tional field in space. A gravitational force is an interaction between a mass (g = Fg /m). Be sure that your
and the gravitational field created by other masses. calculations account for the
mass of the hook. Average
When you raise a ball to a certain height above Earth, the ball gains your values to find the gravita-
potential energy. Where is this potential energy stored? The physical tional field strength at your
properties of the ball and of Earth have not changed. However, the location on Earth’s surface.
gravitational field between the ball and Earth has changed since the ball Do you notice anything about
has changed position relative to Earth. According to field theory, the the value you obtained?
gravitational energy is stored in the gravitational field itself.

Circular Motion and Gravitation 237

 FIGURE 2.5 At any point, Earth’s gravitational field can be described by the
gravitational field strength, abbreviated g. The value of g is equal to the
Earth’s Gravitational Field magnitude of the gravitational force exerted on a unit mass at that point,
The gravitational field vectors represent or g = Fg/m. The gravitational field (g) is a vector with a magnitude of g
Earth’s gravitational field at each point. that points in the direction of the gravitational force.
Note that the field has the same strength
at equal distances from Earth’s center.
Gravitational field strength equals free-fall acceleration.
Consider an object that is free to accelerate and is acted on only by gravita-
tional force. According to Newton’s second law, a = F/m. As seen earlier, g
is defined as Fg/m, where Fg is gravitational force. Thus, the value of g at
any given point is equal to the acceleration due to gravity. For this reason,
g = 9.81 m/s2 on Earth’s surface. Although gravitational field strength and
free-fall acceleration are equivalent, they are not the same thing. For
instance, when you hang an object from a spring scale, you are measuring
gravitational field strength. Because the mass is at rest (in a frame of
reference fixed to Earth’s surface), there is no measurable acceleration.
Figure 2.5 shows gravitational field vectors at different points around
Earth. As shown in the figure, gravitational field strength rapidly decreases
as the distance from Earth increases, as you would expect from the
inverse-square nature of Newton’s law of universal gravitation.

Weight changes with location.

Conceptual Challenge
In the chapter about forces, you learned that weight is the magnitude of
Gravity on the Moon The
the force due to gravity, which equals mass times free-fall acceleration.
magnitude of g on the moon’s We can now refine our definition of weight as mass times gravitational
surface is about __16 of the value field strength. The two definitions are mathematically equivalent, but our
of g on Earth’s surface. Can new definition helps to explain why your weight changes with your
you infer from this relationship location in the universe.
that the moon’s mass is __16 of Newton’s law of universal gravitation shows that the value of g depends
Earth’s mass? Why or why not? on mass and distance. For example, consider a tennis ball of mass m. The
Selling Gold A scam artist gravitational force between the tennis ball and Earth is as follows:
hopes to make a profit by buy-
GmmE
ing and selling gold at different Fg = _
altitudes for the same price r2
per weight. Should the scam Combining this equation with the definition for gravitational field
artist buy or sell at the higher strength yields the following expression for g:
altitude? Explain.
Fg Gmm GmE
g=_ _ E _
m = mr 2 = r 2
(bl) ©C Squared Studios/Photodisc/Getty Images

This equation shows that gravitational field strength depends only on

mass and distance. Thus, as your distance from Earth’s center increases,
the value of g decreases, so your weight also decreases. On the surface of
any planet, the value of g, as well as your weight, will depend on the
planet’s mass and radius.

238 Chapter 7
Gravitational mass equals inertial mass.
Because gravitational field strength equals free-fall acceleration, free-fall
acceleration on the surface of Earth likewise depends only on Earth’s
mass and radius. Free-fall acceleration does not depend on the falling
object’s mass, because m cancels from each side of the equation, as
shown on the previous page.
Although we are assuming that the m in each equation is the same,
this assumption was not always an accepted scientific fact. In Newton’s
second law, m is sometimes called inertial mass, because this m refers to
the property of an object to resist acceleration. In Newton’s gravitation
equation, m is sometimes called gravitational mass, because this m
relates to how objects attract one another.
How do we know that inertial and gravitational mass are equal?
The fact that the acceleration of objects in free fall on Earth’s surface
is always the same confirms that the two types of masses are equal.
A more massive object experiences a greater gravitational force, but
the object resists acceleration by just that amount. For this reason,
all masses fall with the same acceleration (disregarding air resistance).
There is no obvious reason that the two types of masses should
be equal. For instance, the property of electric charges that causes
them to be attracted or repelled was originally called electrical mass.
Even though this term has the word mass in it, electrical mass has no
connection to gravitational or inertial mass. The equality between
inertial and gravitational mass has been continually tested and has
thus far always held up.

SECTION 2 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Reviewing Main Ideas
1. Explain how the force due to gravity keeps a satellite in orbit.
2. Is there gravitational force between two students sitting in a classroom?
If so, explain why you don’t observe any effects of this force.
3. Earth has a mass of 5.97 × 1024 kg and a radius of 6.38 × 106 m, while
Saturn has a mass of 5.68 × 1026 kg and a radius of 6.03 × 107 m. Predict
the weight of a 65.0 kg person at the following locations:
a. on the surface of Earth
b. 1000 km above the surface of Earth
c. on the surface of Saturn
d. 1000 km above the surface of Saturn
4. What is the magnitude of g at a height above Earth’s surface where
free-fall acceleration equals 6.5 m/s2?

Critical Thinking
5. Suppose the value of G has just been discovered. Use the value of G
and an approximate value for Earth’s radius (6.38 × 106 m) to find
an approximation for Earth’s mass.

Circular Motion and Gravitation 239