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Newton's law of universal gravitation facts for kids

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Statue of Isaac Newton in the chapel of Trinity College, Cambridge

Newton's universal law of gravitation is a physical law that describes the attraction between two objects with mass. It is talked about in Isaac Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica. The law is part of classical mechanics.

The formula is

F_{g} = G \frac{m_1 m_2}{r^2},

NewtonsLawOfUniversalGravitation.svg

In this equation:

  • Fg is the total gravitational force between the two objects.
  • G is the gravitational constant.
  • m1 is the mass of the first object.
  • m2 is the mass of the second object.
  • r is the distance between the centers of the objects.

In SI units, Fg is measured in newtons (N), m1 and m2 in kilograms (kg), r in metres (m), and the constant G is approximately equal to 6.674×10−11 N m2 kg−2.

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See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Ley de gravitación universal para niños

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