Question

Two bodies A and B of masses m₁ and m₂ when separated by a distance 'd' exert a force F on each other. What happens if the air in the space is replaced by a vacuum?

Answer 1

1. According to the universal law of gravitation, every object in the universe attracts other bodies with a force whose magnitude is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.
2. From the given, the masses of the two bodies A and B are m₁ and m₂. The distance between them is ‘d’.
3. Hence according to the law of gravitation, the gravitational force between the two bodies is given by $F_g=\frac{G{m}_1{m}_2}{d^2}$, where G is the gravitational constant of value 6.67 x 10^-11 Nm² kg^-2.
4. Hence, both bodies A and B move toward each other.
5. Here, the air between them is replaced by a vacuum.
6. As gravitational force is independent of the intervening medium, so there is no air resistance to oppose the movement of the two bodies and the force remains the same.