Newton

Earth

attracts everything towards it by an unseen force of

attraction. This force of attraction is known as
gravitation or gravitation pull.

Universal Law of Gravitation

Every

object in the universe attracts other object by a

force of attraction, called gravitation, which is
directly proportional to the product of masses of the
objects and inversely proportional to the square
distance between them. This is called Law of Gravitation or Universal Law of Gravitation.

of

The distance is considered between the centres of the objects.

Suppose there are two objects having mass M and m respectively.
The distance between their centres is equal to d.
The force of attraction is F.
Therefore, from Law of Gravitation which states that force of attraction by which an object attracts other
object is directly proportional to the product of their masses,

Now, Law of Gravitation also states that force of attraction by which an object attracts other object is inversely
proportional to the square of distance between them.

Now from equation (i) and (ii)

Where, G is the proportionality constant and called Universal Gravitation Constant.

From equation (iii)

The expression (iii) and (iv) are called expression for Universal Law of Gravitation.
This Law is applicable everywhere in universe, thus it is known as Universal Law of Gravitation.
SI Unit of G

The value of G was found out by Henry Cavendish, a British philosopher and scientist.
Importance of Universal Law of Gravitation
This Law is applicable to every object in the universe.
This law explains the cause of revolution of moon around earth and revolution of planets around sun.
This law explains the cause of neap and tide due to moon and sun.

Free Fall
When an object falls from any height under the influence of gravitational force only, it is known as
free fall. In the case of free fall no change of direction takes place but the magnitude of velocity
changes because of acceleration.

This acceleration acts because of the force of gravitation and is

denoted by g. This is called acceleration due to gravity.

Expression for acceleration due to gravitation g.

Let mass of the object put under free fall = m
And acceleration due to gravity = g
Therefore, according to Newtons Second Law of Motion which states that Force is the product of
mass and acceleration,
F = m x g --------------------------------(i)
Now, according to Universal Law of gravitation,

Thus, from above two expressions, we get

Where, g is acceleration due to gravity,
G is the Universal Gravitational Constant.
M is the mass of earth.
And d is the distance between object and centre of earth.

When object is near the surface of earth

When an object is near the surface of earth, the distance between object and centre of the earth will
be equal to the radius of earth because the distance of object is negligible in comparison of the
radius of earth.
Let the radius of earth is equal to R.
Therefore, after substituting R at the place of d we get,

Since, earth is not a perfect sphere rather it has oblique shape. Therefore, radius at the equator is
greater than at the poles.
Since, value of g is reciprocal of the square of radius of earth, thus, the value of g will be greater at
the poles and less at the equator.
And the value of g will decrease with increase of distance of object from earth.
Calculation of value of g

Thus, after substituting the value of G, M and R in the expression for g we get.

Motion of an object under the influence of gravitational force of earth

The expression for g is written as

Since, the value of g does not depend upon the mass or distance of an object, therefore, all objects
fall over the earth with the same rate.

The equations for motion are as follows:

Therefore, the equations of motion are also applied to calculate the velocity, distance, etc by
replacing a by g. After substituting g at the place of a we get above equations as follows:

In the calculation; initial velocity (u), final velocity (v), time taken (t), or distance covered (s), the
value of g is taken as positive in the case of object moving towards earth and taken as negative in
the case of object is thrown in opposite direction of earth.
Mass
Mass is the measurement of inertia and inertia is the property of any object which opposes the
change in state of the object. It is inertia because of which an object in rest has tendency to remain
in rest and an object in motion has tendency to remain in motion.
Inertia depends upon the mass of an object. Object having greater mass has greater inertia and
vice versa. Mass of an object remains constant everywhere, i.e. mass will remain same whether
that object is at the moon, at the earth or anywhere in the universe.
Weight
Earth attracts every object towards it. We know that force is the product of mass and acceleration
due to gravity.
This means, F = m X g -----------------------(i)
The force by which earth attracts an object towards it is called the weight of the object, which is the
product of mass (m) of the object and acceleration due to gravity (g).
Weight is denoted by W.
Therefore, by substituting in the expression F = mg we get

W = m x g ------------------------------(ii)
Since weight is the force which is acting vertically downwards, therefore, weight has both
magnitude and direction and hence it is a vector quantity.
Since the value of g is always constant at a given place,
Therefore, expression W = m x g can be written as follows:
W m --------------------(iii)
This means weight of any object is directly proportional to its mass, i.e. weight will increase with
the increase of mass and decrease with decrease in mass.
This is the cause that weight of any object is the measure of its mass.
The unit of weight

Since, weight of an object is equal to the force by which an object is attracted towards earth,
therefore, unit of weight is same as the unit of force.
Therefore, Unit of weight is newton (N).
Weight of an Object on the Surface of Moon
Since, weight of an object on the earth is the force by which earth attracts that very object towards
it. In similar way, weight of an object on the surface of moon or any other planet is the force by
which moon or any other planet will attract the object towards it.
We know that,
The Mass of Earth = 5.98 x 10

24

kg

Radius of earth = 6.37 x 106 m

Mass of moon = 7.36 x 1022 kg
Radius of moon = 1.76 x 106 m
Since, mass of the moon is less than that of earth, therefore, moon will exert less force of attraction
on any object; in comparison to the earth.
Let mass of an object is m

The weight of the object on earth is W e

The weight of the object on moon is W m
Mass of the earth is M
Mass of the moon is Mm
Radius of earth is R
Radius of moon is Rm
Acceleration due to gravity on earth is g
Acceleration due to gravity on moon is gm.
Therefore,
Weight of the object on earth We = m x g
By substituting the value of g from the expression of Universal Law of Gravitation we get

Weight of the object on moon Wm = m x gm

By the expression of universal law of gravitation,

Or, Weight of an object on the moon = 1/6 of the weight of the object on earth.

Thrust and Pressure

Thrust - Force exerted by an object perpendicular to the surface is called thrust.
Pressure - Force exerted by any object per unit area is called pressure.

Where, p is pressure, F is thrust or force and A is the surface area of the object.
Since, pressure is indirectly proportional to the surface area of the object, thus, pressure
increases with decrease in surface area and decreases with increase in surface area.
SI unit of Pressure
The unit of force is newton (N) and unit of area is square meter

Therefore, by substituting the unit of force and are in equation (i) we get

In the honour of Blaise Pascal, the SI unit of pressure is known as pascal.

One pascal is equal to the 1 newton per square meter.
Or, 1 pascal = N m 2
Thrust and pressure in everyday life

(a) Pressure exerted by a brick - A stretched brick kept on the ground exerts less
pressure than a brick kept on the ground in standing position. This happens because
the surface area of contact of brick in stretched position is more in comparison to the
brick in standing position. And we know that pressure increases with decrease in
surface area and vice versa. Thus, in the case of stretched position a brick exerts less
thrust over the ground in comparison to the brick kept in standing position.
(b) Camel can run easily over the sand. The feet of a camel are large. Larger feet mean
larger area which results in low pressure. Due to this cam can easily walk on sand
without sinking its feet.
(c) Tank easily can run over sand and mud. Caterpillar tracks; surrounding the wheels
provide a larger surface area. Due to this, a tank can move on any terrain without
sinking.
(d) Tractor has broader tyres - Tractors are made mainly for agriculture purpose.
Because of broader tyres, a tractor exerts less pressure over the ground as pressure
decreases with increase in surface area or contact and hence easily runs over the
muddy field.
(e) One end of a nail is pointed When a nail is pushed in a wall or wood, it is pushed
from pointed side. Because of pointed shape, nail exerts more pressure over the wall or
wood and is easily pushed by hammering.
(f) The straps of school bag are broader Since larger surface area exerts less
pressure, therefore school bags with broader straps exert less pressure over the
shoulder of a student while being slung over the shoulder and a student feels it easy to
carry even a heavy bag with more books.

(g) Knife with sharp edge cuts easily compare to one with blunt edge Knife with sharp
edge exerts more pressure because of less area in contact with an object, such as
vegetable and hence it cuts more easily than a knife with blunt edge.
Pressure in Fluids
Any solid object exerts pressure because of weight. Similarly, since fluids also have
weight, thus they exert pressure.
Gas and liquid both are considered as fluids. Fluids exert pressure in all directions over
the inner walls of a container in which they are kept.
Buoyancy
Buoyancy is the
upward force exerted
by fluids over the
surface of contact of
an object which is
immersed in fluids.
Buoyancy is also
known as upward
thrust.

Why does an object sink or float over water

When an object is immersed in water, it exerts pressure over water due to its weight. At
the same time water also exerts upward thrust over the object. If the force exerted by
the object is greater than the upward thrust or buoyancy by water, the object sinks in
water otherwise it floats over water.
Buoyancy in everyday life
(a) Swimming in water Anyone can be able to swim in water because of upward thrust
exerted by water.
(b) Flying of bird or aero plane Since air is a fluid, thus it also exerts upward thrust
over the object. Therefore, because of upward thrust of air a bird or aero plane can fly in
air.

Factors which affect buoyancy

Volume of the object

Density of the fluid

Volume of the object Buoyancy or upward thrust exerted by a fluid increases with the
volume of the object immersed in it.
Density of the fluid The buoyant force or upward thrust increases with increase in
density of the fluid. Denser liquid exert more upward thrust.
This is the cause that it is easier to swim in sea water rather than fresh water. Sea
water is saline. Salts dissolved in sea water increase the density and hence it exerts
more upward thrust than fresh water.
Density

Mass per unit volume of an object is called density or mass density. Density is denoted
by Greek letter rho ().

Where, m is mass of object and V is the volume of that object.

SI Unit of density
The SI unit of mass is kg and SI unit of volume is cubic meter.
Therefore, by substituting the unit of mass and volume in the expression of density we
get

Relative density
For convenience the density of water is expressed in comparison of water. Thus, when
density of a substance is expressed in comparison with water, it is called relative
density.

Relative density has no unit, because it is the ratio of similar quantity.

Practical application of density
Water is taken as reference material because it is easily available at most of the
places and it is easy to carry out the measurement related to density in field visit.
When the relative density of a substance is less than 1, it will float in water otherwise it
will sink in water.
The relative density of ice is 0.91, thus, it floats in
water.
If the relative density of an object is less than 1,
compare to the liquid in which it is immersed, the
object will sink otherwise object will float.
Archimedes Principle
Archimedes Principle states that when an object is
immersed fully or partially in a liquid, it experiences
an upward force which is equal to the weight of liquid
displaced by the object.

There are two figures shown above.

Weight of liquid displaced by object is equal to upward force.
Application of Archimedes Principle
When the weight of displaced liquid by an object is greater than the weight of object, the object will
float in liquid and when the weight of liquid will be smaller than that of the weight of the object, the
object will sink in liquid.
(a) In submarines In submarines, there is a tank which can be filled or emptied as per
requirement. It is called buoyancy tank.
When submarines have to go inside the water, the buoyancy tank is filled with water, so that, the
weight of the submarines would become more than the weight of water displaced by it. And when
submarines have to come over the surface of water, the buoyancy tank is emptied and water is
replaced by air. In this condition, the weight of water displaced by submarines will become more
than the weight of submarines and submarine comes over the surface of water.
(b) Air balloons To raise the air balloon in air; the air inside the balloon is heated. Air expands
because of heat and becomes lighter. Thus, the balloon gets and upward thrust from the
surrounding air and rises up.
(c) Ships A ship is much heavier than water, yet it floats on water. This happens because of unique
shape of the ship. Because of its shape, the volume of the ship is larger compared to its weight. Due

to this, water displaced by the ship provides a proper upward thrust to the ship and the ship floats on
water.

Q.1: How does the force of gravitation between two objects change when the distance between them is
reduced to half?
Ans: According to the law of gravitation, the force of attraction acting between two bodies is given by,

Thus, when the distance between the objects is reduced to half the gravitational force increases by four times
the original force.
Q.2: The gravitational force acts on all objects in proportion to their masses. Why, then, a heavy object does
not fall faster than a light object?
Ans: Let F be the gravitational force acting on a body of mass m, then it can be given by,

From the above equations we can see that F m, although g (acceleration due to gravity) does not depend on
m. Hence, all bodies fall with the same acceleration provided there is no air or other resistance.
Q.3: What is the magnitude of the gravitational force between the earth and a 1 kg object on its surface?
(Mass of the earth = 6 x 1024 kg and radius of the earth is 6.4 x 106 m)
Ans: Given that,
Mass of the body (m) = 1 kg
Mass of the Earth (M) = 6 x 1024 kg
Radius of the earth (R) = 6.4 x 106 m
Now magnitude of the gravitational force (F) between the earth and the body can be given as,

Q.4: The earth and the moon are attracted to each other by gravitational force. Does the earth attract the
moon with a force that is greater or smaller or the same as the force with which the moon attracts the earth?
Why?
Ans: The earth surface attracts the moon with the same force with which the moon attracts the earth.
According to Newtons 3rd law, these two forces are equal and opposite.
Also by the universal law of gravitation, the force acting between earth and moon will be:

Where M1 = Mass (earth), M2 = Mass (moon), d = Distance between earth and moon. The magnitude of force
(F) is same for earth and moon.
Q.5: If the moon attracts the earth, why does the earth not move towards the moon?
Ans: According to the Newtons 3rd law of motion, the moon also attracts the earth with a force equal to that
with which the earth attracts the moon. Since the earth is much larger than the moon so, the acceleration
produced on the earth surface (acceleration 1/m) can not be noticed.
Q.6: What happens to the force between two objects, if
(i) the mass of one object is doubled?
(ii) the distance between the objects is doubled and tripled?
(iii) the masses of both objects are doubled?
Ans:
(i) When the mass of either body is doubled, the force is also doubled as per the following equation:

(ii) When the distance between the objects is doubled, the force becomes one fourth of the original force as
per the following equation:

Similarly it can be shown that when the distance between the objects is tripled, the force becomes one ninth
of the original force.
(iii) In the same way as given in the answer (i) above this can be shown that when the masses of both bodies
are doubled, the force becomes four times the original force.
Q.7: What is the importance of Universal Law of Gravitation?
Ans: There are many importance of Universal Law of Gravitation as with the help of this law we can explain
natural phenomena such as,
1. the force of attraction that binds us to the earth,
2. the motion of planets moving around the sun,
3. the motion of moon around the earth
4. the occurring of tides due to sun and moon.
Q.8: What is the acceleration of free fall?
Ans: It is the acceleration produced when a body falls under the influence of the force of gravitation of the
earth alone. On the surface of the earth its value is 9.8 m/s2.
Q.9: What do we call the gravitational force between the earth and an object?
Ans: Weight of that object.
Q.10: Amit buys few grams of gold at poles as per the instruction of one of his friends. He hands over the
same when he meets him at equator. Will the friend agree with the weight of gold bought? If not, why?
Ans: His friend wont agree with the weight of gold bought. Since the value of g is less at the equator than
that at the poles so, the same gold weighed at the poles will measure less when taken to equator.
Q.11: Why will a sheet of paper fall slower than one that is crumpled into a ball?
Ans: Because the sheet of paper will experience larger air resistance due to its larger surface area than its
surface area in ball form. Hence, a sheetof paper falls slower than one that is crumpled into a ball.
Q.13: A ball is thrown vertically upwards with a velocity of 49 m/s. Calculate
(i) the maximum height to which it rises,
(ii) the total time it takes to return to the surface of the earth.
Ans:

Q.14: A stone is released from the top of a tower of height 19.6 m. calculate its final velocity just before
touching the ground.
Ans: Given that,
u = 0, g = 9.8 ms2, s = 19.6 m
Now, v2 - u2 = 2gs
or,

v2 - 0 = 2 x 9.8 x 19.6 = (19.6)2

or,

v = 19.6 ms1 (we will consider value of v only +ve since it is in the downward direction)

Q.15: A stone is thrown vertically upwards with an initial velocity of 40 m/s. Taking g = 10 m/s 2, find the
maximum height reached by the stone. What is the net displacement and total distance covered by the stone?
Ans: Given that, u = 40 ms1, g = 10 ms2
At the highest point (h) the velocity (v) will be zero.
using the equation, v2 - u2 = 2gh
0 402 = 2(10)h
or, h = 80 m
or, the total distance covered = 2h = 160 m
Net displacement = 80 80 = 0
Q.16: Calculate the force of gravitation between the earth and the sun, given that the mass of the earth = 6 x
1024 kg and of the sun = 2 x 1030 kg. The average distance between the two is 1.5 x 1011 m.
Ans:

Q.17: A stone is allowed to fall from the top of a tower 100 m high and at the same time another
stone is projected vertically upwards from the ground with a velocity of 25 m/s. Calculate when
and where the two stones will meet?
Ans:

Q.19: In what direction does the buoyant force on an object immersed in a liquid act?
Ans: The buoyant force acts on an object in the vertically upward direction through the center of
gravity of the displaced liquid.
Q.20: Why does a block of plastic released under water come up to the surface of water?
Ans: It is because the upthrust or the buoyant force exerted by the water brings the plastic block
to the surface of water.
Q.21: The volume of 50 gm of a substance is 20 cm 3. If the density of water is 1 g/cm 3, will the
substance float or sink?
Ans:
Given the mass of the substance = 50 g
Volume of the substance = 20 cm3
Density of substance = Mass Volume = (50 20) g/cm3 = 2.5 g/cm3
Since the density of the substance is greater than the density of water (1 g/cm 3), so the substance
will sink in the water.
Q.22: The volume of a 50 gm sealed packet is 350 cm 3. Will the packet float or sink in water if
the density of water is 1 g/cm3 ? What will be the mass of the water displaced by this packet ?
Ans:
Mass of packet = 500 g

Volume of packet = 350 cm3

Density of packet = Mass Volume = (500 350) g/cm3 = 1.43 g/cm3
The sealed packet will sink in the water as its density is more tan that of water.
The volume of water that will be displaced by the packet = 350 cm3
And mass of this displaced water = Volume x Density = 350 x 1 = 350 gm