All Textbook Topics - Forces and Motion - Gravity Introduction - The value of gravitational field strength (g) on other planets and moons is different because the mass of other planets and moons is different to the mass of the Earth

The value of gravitational field strength (g) on other planets and moons is different because the mass of other planets and moons is different to the mass of the Earth

The mass of an object determines the value of it's gravitational field strength, g. Planets or moons with more mass will have a higher value of g, and ones with less mass will have a lower value of g.

  • You can see in this diagram that Earth has a value for g of 9.81 N/kg.
  • Mars has a lower mass than Earth so has a lower value of g at 3.75 N/kg.
  • The Moon has an even lower value of mass than Mars, so it has a lower value of g at 1.625 N/kg.
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The value of gravitational field strength on the Earth's surface is approximately 10N/kg
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The equation to calculate weight from mass is: Weight = mass x gravitational field strength (symbol equation: W=mg)

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