Question

The weight of a person on or above the surface of the earth varies inversely as the square of the distance the person is from the center of the earth. A particular person weighs 179 pounds on the surface of the earth and the radius of the earth is 3900 miles. Determine the equation that relates weight, W, to the distance from the center of the earth, d, for this person.

Answer 1

The equation that relates weight, W to the distance from the center of the earth, d, to this person is W = 1/d. We arrive at this formula according to weight’s inverse relationship with distance from the center of the earth.