CHAPTER 6

GRAVITATION
 THERE EXIST A ATTRACTS ANY
GRAVITATIONAL FIELD OBJECT PLACED IN
SURROUNDING ANY THE GRAVITATONAL
OBJECT FIELD

CONSISTS A
GRAVITATIONAL
FIELD LINES
EVERY
PERTICLES IN
UNIVERSE THE FIELD OF FORCE SURROUNDING A BODY
ATTRACTS ANY OF FINITE
OTHER MASS IN WHICH ANOTHER BODY WOULD
PARTICLE EXPERIENCE AN ATTRACTIVE FORCE
 THE ATTRACTIVE FORCE BETWEEN ANY TWO OBJECTS IS DIRECTLY
PROPOTIONAL TO THE PRODUCT OF THEIR MASSES BUT INVERSELY
PROPOTIONAL TO THE SQUARE OF SEPARATION APART

• THE GRAVITATIONAL FORCE OF M1 AND M2 IS EQUAL AND OPPOSITE THE

GRAVITATIONAL FORCE OF M1 AND M2
-THE MAGNITUDE OF THE FORCE ON EACH OBJECT IS THE SAME BUT IN THE OPPOSITE
DIRECTION
REPRESENTED BY GRAVITATIONAL FIELD LINES
POINTING TOWARDS THE OBJECT *ͮ−*

 MOON-EARTH

 APPLE-EARTH
GRAVITATIONAL FIELD STRENGHT,g
• AT A POINT IN A GRAVITATIONAL FIELD IS
DEFINED AS THE FORCE PER UNIT MASS
ACTING ON THAT POINT
• g = ACCELERATION DUE GRAVITY
F=ma
=mg
g= F/m

SEPERATION BETWEEN
GRAVITATIONAL FIELDS GRAVITATIONAL FIELD
LINES
VARIATION OF GRAVITATIONAL FIELD
STRENGHT, g
 R
r

GRAVITATIONAL ATTRACTIVE
FORCE (m – M)

OUTSIDE THE
EARTH
(r > R)
INSIDE THE EARTH
(r < R)

GRAVITATIONAL
ATTRACTION
(m – M’)
 THE VARIATION OF g WITH r

(r< R)

(r > R) g’ r² g’ r (r< R)
VARIATION OF g WITH LATITUDE
HORIZONTAL

VARIATION OF
ACCELERATION ACCELERATION
DUE TO GRAVITY DUE TO
GRAVITY

CENTRIPETAL
FORCE, F= mrw²
VARIATION OF g WTH LATITUDE

COS 0˚=1
 6.3 GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL
U=mV
GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL
ENERGY, U

THE GRAVITATIONAL
POTENTIAL ENERGY U OF
A BODY AT A POINT P IN A
GRAVITATIONAL FIELD IS
DEFINED AS THE WORK
DONE TO BRING THE MOVE A SMALL
DISTANCE WORK MOVE TO THE
BODY FROM INFINITY TO
POINT P
P. DONE

UNIT: JOULE, J
TOTAL
WORK
DONE
 THE GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL V AT A POINT IN A
GRAVITATIONAL FIELD DEFINED AS THE WORK DONE
GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL, V
PER UNIT MASS TO BRING A BODY FROM INFINITY TO
P.
V=U/m UNIT: JOULE PER KG, J/KG

POTENTIAL ENERGY

MASS
VARIATION OF GRAVITATIONAL
POTENTIAL ,V
• The gravitational potential is a scalar field that affects all
objects with mass.
• The gravitational potential energy is the potential energy
of a specific object in this field, so in other words, it
depends on mass.
• It's like potential is always there, and the energy is a single
number attached to a certain object which represents how
much the objects experiences the field.

 E.g. A bowling ball and ping pong ball are at rest on

pedestals 1m of the floor surface. They both have the
same gravitational potential, but because the bowling ball
has a larger mass, it has more gravitational potential
energy.