Question

The force of attraction between m1 and m2 is 26 N. What will this force become if m2 is tripled?

Answer 1

If the second mass m2 is tripled while the first mass and the distance remain constant, the force of attraction between the two masses would increase to 3 times the original force, resulting in a new force of 78 N.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question relates to the force of attraction between two masses when one mass is tripled. According to Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation, which applies to the attraction force between two masses, the force is directly proportional to the product of the two masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers.

Given the force of attraction is currently 26 N and m2 is tripled, the new force will be 3 times the original force since the only change is a tripling of m2. Therefore, the new force of attraction would be 3 * 26 N = 78 N.

This concept also relates to Coulomb's Law in electrostatics, where the force between two charges is similarly proportional to the product of the two charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. Hence, these principles are key to understanding forces between masses or charges.

Answer 2

In order to determine the effect, we will first consider the mathematical expression of Newton's law of gravitation:
F = (Gm₁m₂)/r², where G is the gravitational constant, m represents the mass of a body, and r is the separation between the two bodies.
It is visible that the force is directly proportional to the product of the two masses. Therefore, if one mass is kept constant and the other is tripled, the force will also triple. Thus, the force will be:
26 * 3
= 78 Newtons