Lecture 2

Universal Gravitation
LECTURER
MR. M C Zulu
INTRODUCTION
 What do aching feet, a falling apple, and the orbit of

the Moon have in common? Each is caused by the
gravitational force.
 Sir Isaac Newton was the first scientist to precisely
define the gravitational force, and to show that it
could explain both falling bodies and astronomical
motions.
 Gravity is another example of underlying simplicity in
nature. It is the weakest of the four basic forces found
in nature, and in some ways the least understood.
NEWTON’S LAW OF UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION
 Every particle in the Universe attracts every other particle with a force
that is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely
proportional to the square of the distance between them.
mM
Fg  G 2
r
 where G is a constant, called the universal gravitational
constant. Its value in SI units is
11
G  6.674 10 N  m / kg
2 2
NEWTON’S LAW OF UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION CONT.
 The universal gravitational constant G was first

evaluated in the late nineteenth century, based on
results of an important experiment by Sir Henry
Cavendish (1731–1810) in 1798.
 The figure shows Cavendish apparatus for measuring
gravitational forces
EXAMPLE
 Three 0.300-kg billiard balls are placed on a table at

the corners of a right triangle as shown in the Figure.
The sides of the triangle are of lengths a = 0.400𝑚,
𝑏 = 0.300𝑚, and 𝑐 = 0.500𝑚.
 Calculate:
a) The gravitational force vector on the cue ball 𝑚1
resulting from the other two balls
b) The magnitude of the gravitational forces
c) and direction of this force.
EXAMPLE CONT.
 Find the force exerted by 𝑚2 on the cue ball:

m2 m1 ˆ 11 2  0.300 kg  (0.300 kg ) ˆ 11 ˆ
F21  G 2 j  (6.674 10 N  m / kg )
2
j  3.75  10 jN
 0.400m 
2
r
 Find the force exerted by 𝑚3 on the cue ball:

m3 m1 ˆ 11 2  0.300 kg  (0.300 kg ) ˆ 11 ˆ
F31  G 2 i  (6.674 10 N  m / kg )
2
i  6.67  10 iN
 0.300m 
2
r
FREE-FALL ACCELERATION AND THE GRAVITATIONAL FORCE
 We have called the magnitude of the gravitational force on an object near the
Earth’s surface the weight of the object, where the weight is given by Equation
w  mg
 But we know that the gravitational force on an object of mass on the surface of the
earth is equal to the weight of the object, hence
w  Fg
mM E ME
mg  G 2 g G 2
RE RE
 This equation relates the free-fall acceleration 𝑔 to physical parameters of the
Earth—its mass and radius—and explains the origin of the value of 9.80 𝑚/𝑠 2
FREE-FALL ACCELERATION AND THE GRAVITATIONAL FORCE CONT.
 Now consider an object of mass m located a distance h above the Earth’s surface or a distance r
from the Earth’s center, where 𝑟 = 𝑅𝐸 + ℎ. Then the equation for gravity becomes;
ME
g G
 RE  h 
2
 Therefore, it follows that g decreases with increasing altitude.

 Because an object’s weight is 𝑚𝑔, we see that as 𝑟 → ∞, the weight of the object approaches zero.
TASK
 Using the known radius of the Earth and that 𝑔 = 9.80 𝑚/𝑠 2 at the Earth’s surface, find the average
density of the Earth.
ANALYSIS MODEL: PARTICLE IN A FIELD (GRAVITATIONAL)
 The gravitational field at a point in space equals the gravitational force 𝑭𝒈 experienced by
a test particle placed at that point divided by the mass 𝑚0 of the test particle.
Fg
g
m0
 Notice that the presence of the test particle is not necessary for the field to exist:
ANALYSIS MODEL: PARTICLE IN A FIELD (GRAVITATIONAL) CONT.
 Imagine an object with mass that we call a source

particle. The source particle establishes a
gravitational field g throughout space.
 The gravitational field is evaluated by measuring
the force on a test particle of mass 𝑚0 .
Fg
g
m0
 Now imagine a particle of mass m is placed in that
field. The particle interacts with the gravitational
field so that it experiences a gravitational force
given by
Fg  mg
EXAMPLE
 The International Space Station operates at an altitude of 350 km. An online search for the station
shows that a weight of 4.11 × 106 𝑁, measured at the Earth’s surface, has been lifted off the surface
by various spacecraft during the construction process. What is the weight of the space station as it
moves in its orbit?
EXAMPLE CONT.
 From the particle in a field model, we find the mass of the space station from its weight at the surface
of the Earth:
Fg  surface 4.11106 N
m  2
 4.19  10 5
kg
g surface 9.80m / s
 with ℎ = 350 𝑘𝑚 we find the magnitude of the gravitational field at the orbital location:
GM E (6.674 1011 N  m 2 / kg 2 )(5.97 1024 kg )

g orbital    8.82m / s 2
 RE  h   6.37 10 m  0.350 10 m 
2 6 6 2
Fg orbit  mg orbit   4.19  10 kg  (8.82m / s )  3.70 10

5 2 6
N
GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL ENERGY
 We studied gravitational potential energy in Potential Energy and Conservation of Energy, where the
value of g remained constant. We now develop an expression that works over distances such that g
is not constant. This is necessary to correctly calculate the energy needed to place satellites in orbit
or to send them on missions in space
 In Potential Energy and Conservation of Energy, we showed that the change in gravitational
potential energy near Earth’s surface is
U  mg (h2  h1 )
GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL ENERGY CONT.
 As a particle of mass m moves from Ⓐ to Ⓑ above the Earth’s

surface, the gravitational potential energy of the particle–Earth
system changes according to the Equation
 1 1
U  GM E m   
r r 
 f i 
 Taking 𝑈𝑖 = 0 at 𝑟1 = 0 we obtain the important result
GM E m
Ug r   
r
ENERGY CONSIDERATIONS IN PLANETARY AND SATELLITE MOTION
 In Potential Energy and Conservation of Energy, we described how to apply conservation of

energy for systems with conservative forces.
 We were able to solve many problems, particularly those involving gravity, more simply using
conservation of energy. Those principles and problem-solving strategies apply equally well
here. The only change is to place the new expression for potential energy into the
conservation of energy equation.
ET  K i  U i  K f  U f
1 2 GMm 1 2 GMm
mvi   mv f 
2 ri 2 rf
ESCAPE VELOCITY
 We are now in a position to calculate the escape speed, which is the minimum speed the
object must have at the Earth’s surface to approach an infinite separation distance from the
Earth.
 Escape velocity is often defined to be the minimum initial velocity of an object that is
required to escape the surface of a planet (or any large body like a moon) and never return
1 2 GMm 1 2 GMm
mvi   mv f 
2 ri 2 rf
At the surface of the body, the object is located at 𝑟𝑖 = 𝑅 and it has escape velocity 𝑣𝑖 = 𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑐 . It
reaches 𝑟𝑓 = ∞ with velocity 𝑣𝑓 = 0 . Substituting into Equation above we have
2GM E
vesc 
R
End of Lecture 2

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Universal Gravitation

 What do aching feet, a falling apple, and the orbit of

 The universal gravitational constant G was first

 Three 0.300-kg billiard balls are placed on a table at

 Find the force exerted by 𝑚2 on the cue ball:

 Find the force exerted by 𝑚3 on the cue ball:

 Therefore, it follows that g decreases with increasing altitude.

 Imagine an object with mass that we call a source

GM E (6.674 1011 N  m 2 / kg 2 )(5.97 1024 kg )

Fg orbit  mg orbit   4.19  10 kg  (8.82m / s )  3.70 10

 As a particle of mass m moves from Ⓐ to Ⓑ above the Earth’s

 Taking 𝑈𝑖 = 0 at 𝑟1 = 0 we obtain the important result

 In Potential Energy and Conservation of Energy, we described how to apply conservation of

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