Gravity and gravitational force are two crucial types of forces observed in the field of gravitation. Both of them provide information regarding the dynamic types of forces acting on it. Gravity has a very limited range of active area whereas gravitational force can be calculated between any two bodies present either within the earth’s atmosphere or in space.
Gravity vs Gravitational Force
The main difference between gravity and gravitational force is that gravity is observed within the earth’s atmosphere and is constantly at every point of the earth. On the other hand, the gravitational force is not constant and may vary from conditionto condition. Gravity being a vector quantity changes with direction while the magnitude remains the same. While gravitational force is scalar and does not depend on direction.
Gravity is merely a type of resultant force which is a combination of gravitational force and earth’s centripetal force. Being a vector quantity, gravity depends upon the direction. Also, gravity can be stated as a special condition of the gravitational force between earth and another object. Gravity is mainly responsible for the proper arrangement of objects on the surface of the earth.
Gravitational force is one of the major naturally occurring forces. It is a natural phenomenon that exists between two bodies possessing mass. The mathematical formula of gravitational force has a constant named universal gravitation constant. Also, the pull of the moon is responsible for the sea tides of the earth.
Comparison Table Between Gravity and Gravitational Force
What is Gravity?
Acceleration due to gravity commonly known as gravity is mainly the result of attraction between an object and earth. Talking about gravity on the Earth, it is a type of reaction force caused mainly due to earth centripetal force and traditional force. The acceleration due to gravity is a vector quantity whose magnitude remains the same but changes due to changes in direction.
While ignoring the earth’s air effect and friction, the value of acceleration due to gravity is 9.8 m/s which is constant throughout the earth’s surface. Moreover, for calculation purposes, gravity is often rounded off to 10 m/s for convenience. According to Newton’s second law of motion, force is equal to the product of mass and acceleration.
Also, here force refers to the weight of an object, and acceleration is termed acceleration due to gravity. Hence, Gravity is often given the credit for determining the weight on the surface of the earth. However, the weight of According to the tidal effects, gravity does not count in the gravitational pull of the moon and sun.
According to the facts, the earth does not have a proper shape which makes a slight deviation in the value of gravity. Also, the value of gravity at the poles is slightly higher than the value of gravity at the equator.
What is Gravitational Force?
According to Newton’s law of universal gravitation, two bodies present in a medium or space are attracted to each other. The amount of force is directly proportional to the product masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between the two. According to the fundamental principles of physics, natural forces are mainly categorized into 4 types of forces.
The strongest force is nuclear force and gravitational force is the weakest force. Hence, gravitational force shows no impact on smaller levels such as subatomic levels. While taking a look at the macroscopic level, gravitational force shows an immense effect on shape formation, rigidity, trajectory, and even at the orbital revolution scale.
The effect of gravitational force can be seen in the form of tides appearing on earth. These tides are caused due to the gravitational force of the moon. The gravitation can be seen in all states of matter such as solid, liquid, and gas.
For example, the stars are just a bunch of gases collaborated through their gravity. And hence, the whole universe is bounded through this gravitation. According to Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity, gravity is not just a force but also an impact of the earth’s attraction and hence facilitates the even distribution of matter.
Main Differences Between Gravity and Gravitational Force
- Gravity is a vector quantity as it changes with direction whereas the gravitational force is a scalar quantity.
- Gravity is independent of the distance between the object and the earth whereas the gravitational force depends inversely on the square of the distance between the two objects.
- Gravity has a constant value whereas gravitational force is dependent on the distance and masses of the bodies.
- There is no need to calculate the gravity whereas gravitational force involved a gravitational constant in the prescribed formula.
- In gravity, the object is always attracted to the earth whereas, in gravitational force, both the objects are attracted towards each other.
Conclusion
The forces that exist in nature may vary within area or distance. Gravitational force is one of the fundamental forces that exist in nature. Gravitational force exists between any two celestial bodies whether present on earth or space.
The magnitude of the gravitational force depends upon the masses of bodies and the distance between them. Gravity is a special condition in which the gravitation takes place between earth and another object. Gravity is a combined form of gravitational pull and centripetal force of the earth.
Gravity is responsible for the systematic placement of an object on the surface of the earth. Many scientists throughout the world have made early attempts to figure out the mystery of gravitation. Due to the combined efforts of Newton, Haley, and Hooke, gravitation came into scientific existence.
Newton ultimately derived a mathematical equation for the gravitational force which shows its dependency on mass and distance. For the generalization of this formula, Newton added universal gravitation constant so that formula is valid for space and planet. However, the gravity on earth depends upon several factors, and notice a slight deviation in the magnitude of gravity.
Earth’s shape is not uniform and hence an average value of the earth’s radius is taken to calculate the gravitation pull. In modern-day technologies, gravitation and gravity play an important role in satellites placing in orbit.
References
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/sce.3730650308
- http://pioneer.netserv.chula.ac.th/~kkornkar/inter%20trade%20undergrad/term%20paper/gravity%202.pdf
- https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/288536
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1466853X03001391