Gravitational Field of a Point Mass
 

Gravitational Field of a Point Mass problem 6


  • State what is indicated by the direction of the gravitational field line at a point in a gravitational field.


  • A large isolated uniform sphere has mass and radius . Point P lies on a straight line passing through the centre of the sphere, at a variable displacement from the centre, as shown in the figure below.




    The graph below shows the variation with of the gravitational field at point P due to the sphere for

    the values of for which P is inside the sphere.




    The magnitude of the gravitational field at the surface of the sphere is .


    • Determine an expression for in terms of and . Identify any other symbols that you use.


    • Explain why, at the surface of the sphere, always has the opposite sign to .


 

main author and content editor: Ebenezer Adekunle