alleryStart learning →How does the gravitational force vary with the distance between two particles?
AInversely as the square of the distance
BDirectly as the square of the distance
CInversely as the distance itself
DDirectly as the cube of the distance
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. Inversely as the square of the distance
1. The law makes the force proportional to the product of the two masses.
2. It also makes the force inversely proportional to the square of their separation.
3. So doubling the separation cuts the force to a quarter of its former value.
4. This inverse square behaviour is what makes planetary orbits come out as conic sections.
_Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 6 "Uniform Circular Motion and Gravitation", section 6.5 Newton's Universal Law of Gravitation_
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