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Acceleration Due to Gravity definitions Flashcards

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Acceleration Due to Gravity definitions
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  • Acceleration due to gravity
    The rate at which an object accelerates towards a planet due to gravitational force, denoted as g.
  • Newton's law of gravity
    A law stating that every mass attracts every other mass with a force proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.
  • Gravitational force
    The force of attraction between two masses, calculated as Gmm/r^2.
  • Surface gravity
    The acceleration due to gravity experienced at the surface of a planet, calculated as GM/R^2.
  • Radius of Earth
    The distance from the center of the Earth to its surface, used in calculating surface gravity.
  • Mass of the planet
    The total mass of a planet, denoted as M, which influences the gravitational force it exerts.
  • Height above surface
    The distance above a planet's surface, affecting the calculation of gravitational acceleration.
  • Local constant
    A constant value for surface gravity that remains the same at any point on a planet's surface.
  • Point masses
    Objects considered to have mass concentrated at a single point for simplification in gravitational calculations.
  • Free fall
    The motion of an object under the influence of gravitational force only.
  • Weight
    The force exerted by gravity on an object, calculated as mg.
  • Gravitational constant
    The constant G in the gravitational force equation, approximately 6.67 x 10^-11 N(m/kg)^2.
  • Variable g
    The acceleration due to gravity that changes with distance from the planet's center.
  • Kinematics
    The branch of physics that deals with the motion of objects without considering the forces that cause the motion.
  • Mount Everest
    The highest mountain on Earth, used as an example to calculate gravitational acceleration at a height.