Question

2. According to Newton's Law of Gravitation, if the distance between two bodies is doubled the attractive force between them is a) increased

by a factor of 2, b) decreased by a factor of 1/2, c) increased by a factor of 4, d) decreased by a factor of ¼

PROBLEMS, If your answer differs by a little bit in the last digit, remember that the answers here may have been rounded off

Answer 1

Answer: option d (force will be decreased by a factor 1/4) [it will be more appropriate to say force will be decreased to 1/4 of initial force]

Explanation:

According to Newton's law of gravitation,

F= G* M₁*M₂/R²

where

F= gravitational attractive force acting between the two masses

G= gravitational constant

M₁ and M₂ = the two masses

R= distance between the two masses.

Now, if we double the distance between the two bodies, the new distance becomes 2R

then, gravitational acceleration force will be,

G*M₁*M₂/(2R)²

=1/4* G*M₁M₂/R²

=1/4*F

=F/4 So, option d is correct.