According to Newton's law of gravitation, how is the force between two particles determined?

According to Newton's law of gravitation, how is the force between two particles determined?

• A. It is proportional to their masses and inversely proportional to the distance squared.
• B. It is proportional to their velocities and inversely proportional to time.
• C. It is independent of mass and directly proportional to the distance.
• D. It is proportional to the acceleration of one particle.

Answer: (A)

The force between two particles, according to Newton's law of gravitation, is described by the equation \( F = G \frac{m_1 m_2}{r^2} \). This equation states that the gravitational force \( F \) is directly proportional to the product of the masses \( m_1 \) and \( m_2 \) of the two particles, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance \( r \) between their centers. This means that as the masses increase, the gravitational force increases, which aligns with the idea that heavier objects exert a stronger pull on each other. Conversely, as the distance between the two objects increases, the force decreases rapidly because it is inversely proportional to the square of the distance. This relationship highlights the importance of both mass and distance in understanding gravitational interactions as defined by Newton's framework. In comparison, other options do not accurately reflect the principles of gravity. For instance, the notions of velocity or acceleration in the other choices are unrelated to the fundamental characteristics of gravitational force described by Newton.

The force between two particles, according to Newton's law of gravitation, is described by the equation ( F = G \frac{m_1 m_2}{r^2} ). This equation states that the gravitational force ( F ) is directly proportional to the product of the masses ( m_1 ) and ( m_2 ) of the two particles, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance ( r ) between their centers.

This means that as the masses increase, the gravitational force increases, which aligns with the idea that heavier objects exert a stronger pull on each other. Conversely, as the distance between the two objects increases, the force decreases rapidly because it is inversely proportional to the square of the distance. This relationship highlights the importance of both mass and distance in understanding gravitational interactions as defined by Newton's framework.

In comparison, other options do not accurately reflect the principles of gravity. For instance, the notions of velocity or acceleration in the other choices are unrelated to the fundamental characteristics of gravitational force described by Newton.