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In physics, gravity (from Latin gravitas 'weight' [1]) is a fundamental interaction primarily observed as mutual attraction between all things that have mass.Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 10 38 times weaker than the strong interaction, 10 36 times weaker than the electromagnetic force and 10 29 times weaker than the weak interaction.
The gravitational field is a vector field that describes the gravitational force that would be applied on an object in any given point in space, per unit mass. It is actually equal to the gravitational acceleration at that point.
In Newtonian gravity, a particle of mass M creates a gravitational field = ^, where the radial unit vector ^ points away from the particle. The gravitational force experienced by a particle of light mass m , close to the surface of Earth is given by F = m g {\displaystyle \mathbf {F} =m\mathbf {g} } , where g is Earth's gravity .
Determined in this way, the gravitational field g around a single particle of mass M is a vector field consisting at every point of a vector pointing directly towards the particle. The magnitude of the field at every point is calculated by applying the universal law, and represents the force per unit mass on any object at that point in space.
However, to distinguish acceleration relative to free fall from simple acceleration (rate of change of velocity), the unit g is often used. One g is the force per unit mass due to gravity at the Earth's surface and is the standard gravity (symbol: g n), defined as 9.806 65 metres per second squared, [5] or equivalently 9.806 65 newtons of force ...
At a fixed point on the surface, the magnitude of Earth's gravity results from combined effect of gravitation and the centrifugal force from Earth's rotation. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] At different points on Earth's surface, the free fall acceleration ranges from 9.764 to 9.834 m/s 2 (32.03 to 32.26 ft/s 2 ), [ 4 ] depending on altitude , latitude , and ...
The concept of force makes the everyday notion of pushing or pulling mathematically precise. Because the magnitude and direction of a force are both important, force is a vector quantity. The SI unit of force is the newton (N), and force is often represented by the symbol F. Force plays an important role in classical mechanics.
The gravity of Earth, denoted by g, is the net acceleration that is imparted to objects due to the combined effect of gravitation (from mass distribution within Earth) and the centrifugal force (from the Earth's rotation).