Gravitation is the natural phenomenon by which physical bodies attract each other with a force proportional to their mass. It is responsible for the
... [Show More] motion of celestial bodies in the universe, such as planets orbiting around stars and moons around planets. The force of gravity is described by Newton's law of universal gravitation, which states that every mass attracts every other mass in the universe with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers. Gravitation is one of the four fundamental forces of nature, along with electromagnetism, the weak nuclear force, and the strong nuclear force. It is the force that governs the motion of celestial bodies and is responsible for phenomena such as the orbits of planets around the sun and the formation of galaxies.
According to Newton's law of universal gravitation, the force of gravity between two objects is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers. Mathematically, this is expressed as:
\[ F = \frac{{G \cdot m_1 \cdot m_2}}{{r^2}} \]
where:
- \( F \) is the gravitational force between the two objects,
- \( G \) is the gravitational constant (\( 6.67430 \times 10^{-11} \, \text{m}^3 \, \text{kg}^{-1} \, \text{s}^{-2} \)),
- \( m_1 \) and \( m_2 \) are the masses of the two objects,
- \( r \) is the distance between the centers of the two objects.
Gravity plays a crucial role in astronomy and astrophysics, as it governs the motion of planets, stars, galaxies, and other celestial bodies. It is also responsible for phenomena such as tides on Earth and the formation of black holes. In modern physics, gravitation is described by Einstein's general theory of relativity, which provides a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of gravity as the curvature of spacetime caused by mass and energy. [Show Less]