Gravitational Force

Question

Two spherical objects have masses of 750000kg and 96000000kg. Their centers are separated by a distance of 3200m. Find the gravitational attraction between them. 

Answer 1

Hi Angel,

For this problem you want to use the gravitational force equation, F_g = Gm₁m₂ / r² where G is the gravitational constant, m1 and m2 are the masses of the two objects, and r is the distance between the center of mass of each object.

So,

G = a known constant you can look up = 6.67 x 10^-11 N * m² / kg²

m1 = 750000 kg = 7.5 x 10⁵ kg

m2 = 96000000 kg = 9.6 x 10⁷ kg

r² = (3200 m)²

Plug all those numbers into the equation and solve for F. You should be left with units of Newtons. Hope this helps!