ScienceVerseLearning path: Gravity
The concepts to learn before Gravity, in order. Each step links to its page and, where one exists, its quiz.
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Your path
- ForcesDirect prerequisite
A push or pull interaction between two objects, capable of changing an object's velocity. Newton's three laws of motion describe how forces and motion relate: a body keeps its state of motion unless acted on by a net force (first law), net force equals mass times acceleration, F = ma (second law), and forces between two bodies are equal and opposite (third law).
- GravityYour goal
The attractive force between any two masses. Newton's law of universal gravitation describes it as proportional to the product of the two masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. Near Earth's surface this produces a roughly constant downward acceleration of about 9.8 m/s^2 on falling objects.
Where to go next
Concepts that build directly on Gravity:
- Solar System: The Sun and everything gravitationally bound to it: eight planets, their moons, dwarf planets such as Pluto, and countless smaller bodies including asteroids and comets. The Sun's gravity holds the whole system together and keeps the planets in elliptical orbits described by Kepler's laws of planetary motion.