Final answer:
The period of a pendulum on Mars, where gravity is weaker than on Earth, will be longer. Using the formula T2 = T1 * √(g1/g2), the period on Mars is calculated to be approximately 2.60 seconds for a pendulum that has a period of 1.60 seconds on Earth.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the new period, first, you can express the ratio of the periods at two different gravitational accelerations (T2/T1 = √(g1/g2)), and then solve for the new period T2 using the known period on Earth (T1).
If we let T1 = 1.60 s be the period on Earth and g1 = 9.81 m/s² the acceleration due to gravity on Earth, and g2 = 3.71 m/s² the acceleration on Mars, then:
T2 = T1 * √(g1/g2)
T2 = 1.60 s * √(9.81/3.71)
T2 = 1.60 s * √(2.64)
T2 = 1.60 s * 1.625
T2 ≈ 2.60 s
Therefore, the period of the certain pendulum on the surface of Mars is approximately 2.60 seconds.