Question

Two spherical objects have masses of 1.5 x 105 kg and 8.5 x 102 kg. Their centers are separated by a distance of 2500 m. Find the gravitational attraction between them.

Answer 1

Given data

*The mass of the first spherical object is m = 1.5 × 10^5 kg

*The mass of the second spherical object is M = 8.5 × 10^2 kg

*The separated distance between the two spherical objects is r = 2500 m

The expression for the gravitational attraction between them is given as

`F=(GmM)/(r^2)`

*Here G = 6.67 × 10^-11 N.m^2/kg^2 is the value of the gravitational constant

Substitute the known values in the above expression as

`\begin{gathered} F=((6.67*10^(-11))(1.5*10^5)(8.5*10^2))/((2500)^2) \\ =1.36*10^(-9)\text{ N} \end{gathered}`

Hence, the gravitational attraction between them is F = 1.36 × 10^-9 N