CLASS

CBSE-i

XI

UNIT-6

PHYSICS

GRAVITATION

CENTRAL BOARD OF SECONDARY EDUCATION

Shiksha Kendra, 2, Community Centre, Preet Vihar, Delhi-110 092 India

Contents
Preface

Acknowledgements

viii

Teachers manual
Learning outcomes

ix

Teaching Notes

xi

Lesson Plan Matrix

xv

Pre-requisites

xix

Weblinks/vediolinks/other references

xix

Students Manual

Introduction

Astronomy in Ancient India

Keplers Laws of Planetary Motion

Newtons Law of Gravitation

Important Characteristics of Gravitational force

10

The Universal Gravitational Constant (G)

11

Vector Form of Newtons Law of Gravitation

13

Principle of Superposition

13

Acceleration Due to Gravity (G)

16

Variation in G Due to Shape

19

Variation in G with Height

19

Variation in G with Depth

22

Gravitational Field

25

Gravitational Potential Energy

27

Gravitational Potential (V)

32

Escape Speed (Ve)

33

Motion of Satellite

35

Post content student worksheet 1

40

Post content student worksheet 2

41

Post content student worksheet 3

42

Post content student worksheet 4

44

Post content student worksheet 5

45

Preface
The Curriculum initiated by Central Board of Secondary Education -International
(CBSE-i) is a progressive step in making the educational content and methodology
more sensitive and responsive to global needs. It signifies the emergence of
a fresh thought process in imparting a curriculum which would restore the
independence of the learner to pursue the learning process in harmony with the
existing personal, social and cultural ethos.
The Central Board of Secondary Education has been providing support to the
academic needs of the learners worldwide. It has about 11500 schools affiliated
to it and over 158 schools situated in more than 23 countries. The Board has
always been conscious of the varying needs of the learners and has been working
towards contextualizing certain elements of the learning process to the physical,
geographical, social and cultural environment in which they are engaged. The
CBSE-i has been visualized and developed with these requirements in view.
The nucleus of the entire process of constructing the curricular structure is the
learner. The objective of the curriculum is to nurture the independence of the
learner, given the fact that every learner is unique. The learner has to understand,
appreciate, protect and build on knowledge, values, beliefs and traditional
wisdom. Teachers need to facilitate the leaner to make the necessary modifications,
improvisations and additions wherever and whenever necessary.
The recent scientific and technological advances have thrown open the gateways
of knowledge at an astonishing pace. The speed and methods of assimilating
knowledge have put forth many challenges to the educators, forcing them to
rethink their approaches for knowledge processing by their learners. In this
context, it has become imperative for them to incorporate those skills which
will enable the young learners to become life long learners. The ability to stay
current, to upgrade skills with emerging technologies, to understand the nuances
involved in change management and the relevant life skills have to be a part of
the learning domains of the global learners. The CBSE-i curriculum has taken
cognizance of these requirements.

The CBSE-i aims to carry forward the basic strength of the Indian system
of education while promoting critical and creative thinking skills, effective
communication skills, interpersonal and collaborative skills along with information
and media skills. There is an inbuilt flexibility in the curriculum, as it provides
a foundation and an extension curriculum, in all subject areas to cater to the
different pace of learners.
The CBSE introduced the CBSE-i curriculum in schools affiliated to CBSE at
the international level in 2010 at primary and secondary level in classes I and
IX and subsequently in the session 2011-12 initiated the curriculum at Class II,
VI and class X. The current session will take the curriculum forward to classes
III, VII and XI.
An important feature of the Senior Secondary Curriculum is its emphasis on
the specialisation in different fields of study and preparing a student for higher
professional life and career at the work place. The CBSE-i, keeping in mind,
the demands of the present Global opportunities and challenges, is offering the
new curriculum in the subject of English, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Geography,
Accountancy, Business Studies, Information and Communication Technology, and
Mathematics at two levels, Mathematics-I for the students of pure sciences and
Mathematics-II for the students of Commerce and other subjects.
There are some non-evaluative components in the curriculum which would be
commented upon by the teachers and the school. The objective of this part or
the core of the curriculum is to scaffold the learning experiences and to relate
tacit knowledge with formal knowledge. This would involve trans-disciplinary
linkages that would form the core of the learning process. Perspectives, SEWA
(Social Empowerment through Work and Action), Life Skills and Research would be
the constituents of this Core. The Core skills are the most significant aspects
of a learner's holistic growth and learning curve.
The International Curriculum has been designed keeping in view the foundations
of the National Curricular Framework (NCF 2005) NCERT and the experience
gathered by the Board over the last seven decades in imparting effective learning
to millions of learners, many of whom are now global citizens.
The Board does not interpret this development as an alternative to other curricula
existing at the international level, but as an exercise in providing the much
needed Indian leadership for global education at the school level. The Curriculum
envisages pedagogy which would involve building on learning experiences

vi

inside the classroom over a period of time. The Board while addressing the
issues of empowerment and capacity building of teachers believes that all school
must budget for and ensure teachers involved with CBSE-i are continuously
updated.
I appreciate the sincere effort put in by Dr. Sadhana Parashar, Director (Training)
CBSE, Dr. Srijata Das, Education Officer, CBSE and the team of Officers involved
in the development and implementation of this material.
The CBSE-i website enables all stakeholders to participate in this initiative
through the discussion forums provided on the portal. Any further suggestions
are welcome.
Vineet Joshi
Chairman, CBSE

vii

Acknowledgements

viii

Teachers' manual
Syllabus

Learning Outcomes
At the end of this unit, students would be able to:
k
 now the long history of mankinds efforts to understand planetary
motion
differentiate between the geocentric and the heliocentric model and the
historical context under which these ideas prevailed
know about the early astronomical observations and their significance and
contribution towards the development of the law of gravitation.
state and interpret Keplers laws of planetary motion
recognize how Keplers laws originated from the analysis and interpretation
of Tycho Brahes astronomical data
realize how measurements on planetary motion were in agreement with
Keplers law of periods.
State Newtons law of Gravitation
understand the concept of central forces
define G the universal gravitational constant and know about the various
experiments proposed for the measurement of G
draw the vector diagram for the gravitational force between two masses
understand how to compute the net gravitational force due to a collection
of masses
recognize that gravitational force is one of the basic forces of nature and
it is a weak force that is always attractive in nature.
obtain Keplers laws of planetary motion from Newtons law of
Gravitation
recall the concept of acceleration and use it to obtain the expression for g
(the acceleration due to gravity) from Newtons law of Gravitation

ix

 recognize that the shape of the earth affects the value of g for different
points on its surface
comprehend the meaning and significance of the popular statement
Cavendish weighed the earth
realize that the acceleration due to the pull of the earth (i.e. g) is independent
of the mass of the object experiencing this acceleration.
obtain the expression for variation of g with height h, (i.e. g(h)) above the
surface of earth, and understand the limitations of this expression.
recognize why the expression for g(h) cannot be used for negative values
of h (i.e., for points below the surface of the earth)
obtain the expression for variation of g with depth d , (i.e. g(d) below the
surface of earth
recognize that work is done, by or against, the gravitational force, when a
mass is moved from one point to another
recall the concept of potential energy and define Gravitational potential
energy
obtain the general expression for the potential energy of a mass at a height
from the surface of earth and get its usual (approximate) form for small
values of this height.
derive the formula for the gravitational potential energy associated with two
masses separated by a distance
differentiate between gravitational potential energy and gravitational
potential
know the concept of escape speed
obtain the expression for the escape speed from the law of conservation of
energy
appreciate the scientific efforts to place artificial earth satellites in orbits
around the earth and know about their different uses.
obtain the expression for the time period of an orbiting earth satellite
list different types of artificial satellites and obtain the condition under
which an artificial satellite would become a geo-stationary satellite
know the range of applications of a geo-stationary satellite.

Teaching Notes
The discovery of the concept of gravitational force, followed by the discovery of
the quantitative law that determines the magnitude of this force between any
two objects is one of the most significant discoveries in the history of Physics.
It is useful to convey to the students the way Newton used astronomical data
related to the moon to come to the conclusion that the gravitational force between
two objects must vary as inverse of the square of distance between them. The
inverse square nature of this law gives the gravitational force several interesting
properties notable among which are the (i) conservative nature of this force and
(ii) zero value of the gravitational field inside a hollow object. The teacher may
explain that the other importantinverse square force in naturethe electrical
forcealso has similar characteristics. One can therefore convey the message
that the same physical law often help us to understand a variety of apparently
diverse physical phenomenon.
It may also be explained that the inverse square law for gravitational force,
proposed by Newton, was also consistent with Keplers laws of planetary
motion. These laws were based on the painstaking and thorough astronomical
observations of the great Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe. Newtons law of
gravitation, therefore become the core of our understanding of astronomical
phenonmenon in addition to its use in understanding a variety of terrestrial
phenomenon.
The teacher may express this law in vector form and use principle of
superpositioin when the gravitational force on one object is due to a group of
two or more other objects. It may also be stressed that unlike the electrical or the
magnetic force, the gravitational force is always attractive in nature. The direction
of the force between two (point) objects has to be along the line joining the two
(point) objects. This is so because in a region of space where these two (point)
objects alone may be present, the only direction that can be uniquely defined
is the line joining these two points. It may also be pointed out that the direction
of the gravitational force on object 2 due to object 1 has to be opposite to that
of the position vector of object 2 with respect to object 1. The consistency of
this statement with the always attractive nature of the gravitational force has
to be clearly brought out and emphasised.

xi

While discussing the universal nature of the law of gravitation, it needs to be

stressed that we ordinarily do not perceive the effects of this force because of
the very small value of the universal constant of gravitation G . The teacher
may explain how it was thought that we would necessarily need to use very
large, huge masses to measure the (very small) effects of the weak gravitational
force. These intial attempts need to be appreciated in their historical context.
It would be interesting to point out that inspite of the relatively crude nature
of these measurements. The value of G, obtained through these experiments
though not very accurate, was still of the correctorder of magnitude.
While discussing the measurement of G, the teacher may point out why
Cavendishs experimentthe first in-house or laboratory experimenton the
measurement of G, is regarded as one of the most important experiments in
the history of Physics. His novel idea of measuring the (relatively) large effect
of the moment of the couple due to a pair of (small) gravitational forces and
his accurate and precise technique of carrying out his measurements needs to
be shown to the students.
The concept of acceleration due to gravity (g) --- a characteristic constant
for the earth (and other astronomical objects)- needs to be discussed carefully.
The students need to be clarified that a common value of this constant for all
objects of different masses is a consequence of the equality of the inertial and
gravitational mass on the other hand is the ratio of the (magnitudes) of the
gravitational force on the object to its resulting (gravitational) acceleration. The
equality of this (gravitational) mass to the inertial mass of the object and the
nature of the gravitational force (proportional to the product of the mass of the
object and that of the earth) then implies that the acceleration due to the gravity
for the earth, would have the same value for objects of different masses.
While discussing the variation of acceleration due to gravity with height above
the earths surface, it needs to be pointed out that we make calculations by
assuming the entire mass of the earth to be concentrated at its centre. It should
also be pointed out that we can use the formula g

h/g

R2
2

(R + h)

1
h

1+
R

in

1 2h
h << 1. In practice, for ordinary work,
the form gh g
only when
R
R
1
h << 1 can be taken to imply that h
100 or less.
R

The students generally find it difficult to appreciate the decrease in g with

depth below the earths surface. They need to be reminded that since a hollow

xii

spherical shall does not exert any gravitational force on an object inside it, the
effective mass of the earth, that exerts a gravitational force on an object inside
its core is only the mass of that inner core of the earth for which this object is
an external object. This effective mass keeps on decreasing with increasing
depth. Hence there would be a decrease in the gravitational force and therefore,
in the acceleration due to gravity with increasing depth. The students may be
told about the difference between the quantitative formulae gd + g 1 d for the
R
decrease in g with depth and for the decrease in g with height. A graphical
representation of variation of g with (small) heights and with depth would be
an interesting exercise for the students.
While introducing the concept of gravitational potential energy, the students
need to be reminded again that we can associate a definite value with this
energy for a given position of the object, only because the gravitational force
is a conservative force. They also need to be clarified about the fact that it is
only the difference in gravitational potential energy between two points that
has a unique value. The value of the gravitational potential energy at a point
depends on the (somewhat arbitrary) choice of the zero of this potential energy.
If also needs to be emphasised that because of the always attractive nature of
the gravitational force, the gravitational potential energy is usually assigned
a negative sign the maximum value of the gravitational potential energy is
therefore zero.
The concept of gravitational potential is closely related to that of gravitational
potential energy. This is because the gravitational potential at any point, is
just the gravitational potential energy of a unit mass at that point. We can,
therefore, think of the results, associated with gravitational potential energy, as
being also applicable to gravitational potential.
While discussing the concept of the escape speed, the teacher must make it
clear how a simple application of the law of conservation of energy enables
us to calculate this speed. It is important to emphasize that the escape speed,
associated with the earth (or other astronomical objects) is a characterice of the
earth (or of the concerned astronomical object) and it does not depend upon the
mass of the object being projected.
The concept of the satellite speed and its close relation with the radius of
the satellite orbit and the source of the gravitation force ( Earth, or some
other heavenly object) needs to be clearly brought out. The concept of the geo

xiii

stationary satellite and the need for having specifically located launching
pads for such satellites, needs to be clearly explained .
A very interesting concept associated with that of satellites and their astronauts
is that of weightlessness. The students must be made to understand how an
object during its freefall can be regarded to be in a state of weightlessness. They
must be made to realise how an orbiting satellite (can the astronauts present
in it) can also be regarded to be in a state of free fall and therefore, in a state
of weightlessness. It does not mean that the earth is no longer exerting a
gravitational force on it. Rather, the object is in a state where we are not able
to see effects of this gravitational force that we refer to as weight .
An introduction to the concept of satellites needs to be followed by an introduction
to the different types of satellites and the role and application of each of these
different types. A visual depiction of the process of satellite launching and the
basic details of different types of satellites and the role and application of each
of these different types. A visual depiction of the process of satellite launching
and the basic details of different types of satellites should be of immense help
and interest to all students.

xiv

Lesson plan matrix

Content

Skill

Early history of astronomy

Geocentric and
Ability to appreciate the
Heliocentric Models
works of scholars and
thinkers to enhance our
pool of knowledge.

Learning Outcomes
a ppreciate the long
history of mankinds
effort to understand
planetary motion
d
 ifferentiate between
geocentric and
heliocentric models and
the historical context
under which these ideas
prevailed
k
 now how early
astronomical observations
were taken and how
they contributed to the
development of the law
of gravitation.

Astronomy in ancient india

Contribution of Indian
Ability to appreciate the
mathematicians and
highly developed scientific
thinkers
temperament in ancient
India

Appreciate the
contribution of India
in the development of
astronomy

Keplers Laws of Planetary Motion

Keplers Laws of
Ability to state and explain state and interpret
Planetary Motion
Keplers laws
Keplers laws of planetary
motion
Understand the importance
of and interpretation of
scientific data analysis
Able to solve problems
based on Keplers third
law.

r ecognize how Keplers

laws originated from
the analysis and
interpretation of Tycho
Brahes astronomical data
realize how
measurements on
planetary motion were in
agreement with Keplers
law of periods

xv

Newtons Law of Gravitation

Newtons Law of
Appreciate the
Gravitation
contribution of Newton
in the formulation of
the universal law of
Gravitation

state Newtons law of

Gravitation

k
 now the concept of
central forces

Important properties of
Gravitational force

Application of Newtons
law in practical situations

Determination of value
of G

define G and know about

Apply Newtons law
the various experiments
to calculate the net
proposed for the
gravitational force due to a
measurement of G
collection of masses.

Vector Form of Newtons Understand the

law of Gravitation
characteristics of
gravitational force.

comprehend the popular

statement Cavendish
weighed the earth

Principle of
Superposition

d
 raw the vector diagram
for the gravitational force
between two masses

Ability to derive the laws

u
 nderstand how
to compute the net
gravitational forces due to
a collection of masses
r ecognize that
gravitational force is
one of the basic forces
of nature and it is a
weak force that is always
attractive in nature.
o
 btain Keplers laws
of planetary motion
from Newtons law of
Gravitation

ACCELERATION DUE TO GRAVITY

Acceleration due to
Able to apply the
Gravity
Newtons second law to
obtain the value of g

Able to appreciate the fact

that g is not a constant

xvi

recall the concept of

acceleration and use it to
obtain the expression for
g from Newtons law of
Gravitation
recognize that the shape
of the earth affects the
value of g for different
points on its surface

 The learner must develop

meaning and significance
the ability to derive the
of the comprehend
expressions and also apply
the popular statement
it to problems.
Cavendish weighed the
earth
realize that the
acceleration due to the
gravitational pull of the
earth (i.e. g) is same for
all masses
Able to distinguish
between the variation in g
with height and depth

derive the expression

for variation of g with
height h (i.e. g(h)) above
the surface of earth and
understand the expression
limitations of this.
recognize why the
expression for g(h) cannot
be used for negative h
(points below the surface)
obtain the expression for
variation of g with depth
d (i.e. g(d)) below the
surface of earth

GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL ENERGY

Gravitational field
Able to comprehend the
need for the field picture
for gravitational force
Gravitational Potential
Energy

recall the concept of

potential energy and
define Gravitational
potential energy

Ability to co relate the obtain the general

fact that gravitational
the expression for the
potential energy is just one
potential energy of a
of the forms of potential
mass at a height from
energy
the surface of earth
and obtain its usual
approximate form.
Skill to derive the
derive the formula for
expression for gravitational
the gravitational potential
potential energy and be
energy associated with
able to solve problems
two masses separated by
based on the topic.
a distance

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 Extrapolating the result

derived above to a multi
particle system.

Gravitational Potential

ESCAPE SPEED
Escape Speed

differentiate between
gravitational potential
energy and gravitational
potential

Distinguish between
gravitational potential and
potential energy and the
need for the concept of
gravitational potential.
Ability to recall the
concept of escape speed

know the concept of

escape Speed

Derive the expression and

apply it to problems

obtain the expression for

escape speed from the
law of conservation of
energy

SATELLITES
Motion of satellite
(Orbital speed, Time
period of a satellite)

appreciate the scientific

efforts to launch artificial
earth satellites and list
their fields of use
Able to derive the
expression and solve
problems based on the
topic

obtain the expression

for the time period of an
orbiting earth satellite
list different types of
artificial satellites and
obtain the condition for a
geo-stationary satellite
know the range of
applications of a geostationary satellite

xviii

Pre-requisites
Recall the following concepts already learnt in previous classes
Newton's law of gravitation
Equations of motion under free fall.
Concept of potantial energy.
Circular motion

Web-links/vedios/other references
http://www.drennon.org/science/kepler.htm
http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/circles/u6l3c.cfm
http://www.physicsclassroom.com
http://www.schoolscienceguru.com

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Students'
manual

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6.1 Introduction

Long time back, even before man had learnt to read and write, he must have
observed the rising and setting of the sun, the phases of the moon and the shining
stars at night. He must have wondered about the cause of these phenomena.
The in-built curiosity in the mind of man must have led to centuries of thoughts
and ideas. The subject of Gravitation, in the form we study it today, is one of
the consequences of these thoughts and ideas.
Did Newton discover Gravitation?
The answer is an emphatic NO!
The force of Gravitation had always existed and its importance and significance
was realized by various philosophers and thinkers much before Newton.
However, the credit for formulating a, quantitative law, which governs the
nature of the force of gravitation,
must go to Newton.

Early History of Astronomy

Earlier astronomy was based on
the geocentric model in which
the Earth was regarded as the
center of the universe, and all
other heavenly objects were
supposed to orbit around it.
This geocentric model was the
predominant cosmological system
in many ancient civilizations such

Jupiter

Mars
Mercury

EARTH
VENUS

MOON

SUN
SATURN

Figure 1. Geocentric system

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as ancient Greece.
Two observations that must have made a significant contribution to the
formulation of the geocentric model were (i) the stars, sun, and planets appear to
revolve around the Earth each day, making the Earth appear to be the center of
the overall system. (ii) The Earth does not seem to move from the perspective of
an Earth bound observer, for whom it appears as a solid, stable, and unmoving
object.
It was not until the 16th century that a new astronomical model called the
Heliocentric model was developed. In this model the Earth and planets were
imagined to revolve around a stationary Sun which was considered as the centre
of the universe. This word comes from the Greek Helios (sun) and kentron
(center). This notion, that the Earth revolves around the Sun, had been proposed
as early as the 3rd century BCE by Aristarchus of Samos, but his idea received
no support from the other ancient astronomers of that time.

JUPITER
MARS

VENUS
MERCURY
SUN

SATURN

EARTH
MOON

Figure 2. Heliocentric system

A fully predictive mathematical model of a heliocentric system was presented,

by the Renaissance mathematician, astronomer, and Catholic cleric, Nicolaus
Copernicus of Poland, leading to the Copernican Revolution. In the following
century, this model was elaborated and expanded by Johannes Kepler and

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observations, supporting it, made by using a telescope, were presented by

Galileo Galilei.
With the observations of William Herschel, Bessel and others, astronomers soon
realized that the sun was not the center of the universe. By the 1920s, Edwin
Hubble had shown that it was just a part of a galaxy (called the Milky Way
galaxy) that had billions of stars. The Milky Way galaxy, in turn, was just one
of the billions of such galaxies in the universe. The universe was, overall, very
very vast indeed!

6.2 Astronomy in ancient India

Long before Kepler formulated his laws of planetary motion, the study of
planetary motion was a well developed branch of Science in India.
Aryabhata (476550?), in his magnum opus Aryabhatiya (499?) propounded a
planetary model in which the Earth was taken to be spinning on its axis and
the periods of the planets were given with respect to the Sun. He accurately
calculated many astronomical constants, such as the periods of the planets, likely
times of the occurrences of the solar and lunar eclipses, and the instantaneous
motion of the Moon. Early followers of Aryabhatas model included Varahamihira,
Brahmagupta, and Bhaskara II.
Nilakantha Somayaji (14441544?), in his Aryabhatiyabhasya, a commentary
on Aryabhatas Aryabhatiya, developed a computational system for a partially
heliocentric planetary model, in which the planets orbit the Sun, which in turn
orbits the Earth, similar to the Tychonic system later proposed by Tycho Brahe
in the late 16th century. In the Tantrasangraha (1500?), he further revised his
planetary system, which was mathematically more accurate at predicting the
heliocentric orbits of the interior planets than both the Tychonic and Copernican
models. However, the Indian astronomy, in general, fell short of proposing
models of the universe. Nilakanthas planetary system also incorporated the
Earths rotation on its axis. Most astronomers of the Kerala school of astronomy
and mathematics seem to have accepted his planetary model.

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6.3 Keplers laws of Planetary Motion

The motion of the planets, as they revolve around the

Sun, and rise and set on the horizon, must have been a
puzzle to the mankind. Johannes Kepler (1571 1630),
after studying the motion of planets for a lifetime, worked
out the empirical laws governing planetary motion. Later
Newton proved that Keplers laws can be derived from
Newtons law of gravitation.

Figure 3: Kepler

Keplers laws were deduced for planets revolving around the Sun. But, do you realize that
these laws are equally valid for artificial satellites, and also for any other body revolving
around a massive central body. What do you think is the reason?

Keplers First law Law of Orbits

All planets revolve around the Sun in elliptical orbits with the Sun at one of
the foci of the ellipse.
The adjacent figure shows a planet of mass
m revolving around the Sun having a mass
M. (M >> m)
The orbit
parameters

is

characterized

(i) Semi major axis

by

Planet

Sun

two
focl

Figure 4: Diagram showing elliptical path of a

planet with Sun at one of the foci.

(ii) eccentricity (e)

For circular orbits, eccentricity is zero and semi major axis is equal to the radius
of the orbit. For most of the planets the eccentricity of their orbit is so small that
we can assume them to be moving in circular orbits.
For the sake of simplicity, we, therefore, generally assume all orbits to be
circular unless mentioned otherwise.

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Keplers Second Law Law of Areas

The line joining a planet to the Sun sweeps
out equal areas in equal interval of time in
the orbital plane of the planet. i.e. the rate
dA
dt

at which it sweeps out area A (Areal

velocity) is a constant.
Keplers second law is the most important
of the three laws.

dt
A2

dt

A1=A2

A1
sun

planet

Figure 5: Diagram showing area covered by a

planet at two different positions on its orbit.

The area swept by the planet dA in time dt

can be expressed as

dA =

1 2
r
2

dq

(Area of triangle =

1
2

rdq

base height)

where r is the distance between Sun and planet, d

is the angle swept by the (radial line of the) planet
in time dt, as shown in the accompanying figure.
Hence
where

dA
dt

dq

Figure 6:

= 1 r 2 dq = 1 r 2
2

dt

= angular speed of the planet

The magnitude of the angular momentum of the planet, about an axis passing
through the Sun, is

L = rpn

where pn is the component of its linear momentum p along the direction normal
to r

L = r(mv) = r (mwr) = mr2w
From these equations, we get

dA
dt

= L

2m

Since, the gravitational force is a central force, it acts along the line joining the

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Sun to planet i.e. parallel to r . Hence the torque, exerted by the gravitational
force, on the planet, is zero.

In the absence of torque, the angular momentum L remains conserved in

accordance with the law of conservation of angular momentum. Hence the areal
velocity

dA
=
dt

a constant

One simple consequence of Keplers second law is that a planet moves faster
when it is closer to Sun and slower when it is far from it. Can you think of an
explanation?

Keplers Third Law Law of Periods

The square of the time period of revolution of a planet around the Sun, is
directly proportional to the cube of the semi major axis of the orbit. (radius
of the orbit when the orbit can be assumed to be circular.) Thus

T2 r3

where T = time period of revolution of the planet and r = radius of its orbit.
Alternately, we can also write this law as

T12
T22

r13
r23

For an interactive animation visit:

http://www.drennon.org/science/kepler.htm

Concept Probe
1. C
 onsult a table of planetary data. Calculate T2/r3 for each planet. Verify that this quantity
is almost constant for all planets.
2. Y ou are given that the period of rotation of the moon around the earth is approximately
30 days and its distance from the earth is approximately 64 earth radii. Can you calculate
the height of geosynchronous satellite?

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Brahe was the master of quantitative observations but

was deficient in their theoretical interpretation. On the
other hand, Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), a German, who
went to Prague to become Brahes assistant, had a strong
theoretical intuition.
Kepler and Brahe did not get along well. Brahe apparently
mistrusted Kepler; He thus allowed only limited access
to Kepler to his voluminous data.

Figure 7: Tycho Brahe

He set Kepler the task of understanding the orbit of the

planet Mars, which was particularly troublesome. It is
believed that part of the motivation for giving the Mars problem to Kepler was
that it was difficult, and Brahe hoped it would keep Kepler occupied while Brahe
worked on his theory of the Solar System. In a supreme irony, it was precisely
the Martian data that allowed Kepler to formulate the correct laws of planetary
motion, thus eventually achieving a place in the development of astronomy that
far surpassed that of Brahe.
It was left to to Kepler to provide an answer to the final piece of the puzzle.
After a long struggle, in which he tried mightily to avoid his eventual conclusion,
Kepler was finally forced to come to the conclusion that the orbits of the
planets were not the circles (demanded by Aristotle and assumed implicitly
by Copernicus), but were instead the flattened circles that geometers call
ellipses.
The irony, noted above, lies in the realization that the difficulties with the
Martian orbit originate precisely from the fact that the orbit of Mars was the
most elliptical of all the planets for which Brahe had extensive data. Thus, Brahe
had unwittingly given Kepler the very part of his data that allowed Kepler to
eventually formulate the theory of the Solar System that surpassed Brahes
own theory!

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5.4 Newtons Law of Gravitation

We all are familiar with the famous legend of Newton

observing the free fall of an apple and formulating the
law of gravitation. However, it will be appropriate to
mention that Newton gave the law of gravitation after
almost 20 years of his first thought about it which is quite
often associated with the episode of a falling apple.

Figure 8: Sir Issac Newton

Newtons law for gravitational force between two

bodies is one of the most far reaching laws in the history of human scientific
endeavor.
Every body in the universe attracts every other body with a force which is directly
proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of
the distance between them. The force acts along the line joining the two bodies.

If must be noted that the law as stated above

applies to point bodies.
For extended bodies, the distance must
be taken between their centres of mass
(geometrical centres if bodies are regular
and homogeneous) and the direction of the
force is along the line joining their centres
of mass.

F m1m2

m2

m1

Figure 9: Two masses m1 and m2 separated by

distance r.

1
r2
m1m2
r2

where m1 and m2 are the masses of the two bodies and r is the distance between
their centers.

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Note that as the masses of the bodies increase, the force between them increases.
Also, as the distance between their centres increases, the force decreases.

6.5 important characteristics of gravitational

force

The force of gravitation is associated with the following characteristics:

(a) The gravitational force is a central force. It acts along the line joining the
centres of two bodies.
(b) It is a conservative force. This
means that the work done by the
gravitational force in displacing a
body from one point to another is
only dependent on the initial and
final positions of the body and is
independent of the path followed.

1
2

Figure 10: Work done by gravitation force along

path 1 is the same as that along path 2 or path 3.

(c) It is a long range force. The gravitational force is effective even at large
distances.
(d) Unlike electrostatic and magnetic forces, the gravitational force is always
attractive.
The entire Universe is held together by the gravitational force. It is, therefore,
the most important force in nature. However, it is the weakest of all the
fundamental forces in nature.
Note that earlier mass was regarded only as a measure of the inertia of the body. This
led to the concept of inertial mass. Newtons law of gravitation, however, bestows mass
with another property. Mass is also a measure of the gravitational force. This leads us to
the concept of the gravitational mass of an object. However, all the precise experiments
done so far, show that both inertial and gravitational masses are equal.

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Concept Probe
1. W
 hat happens to the gravitational force between two bodies if the mass of one of the
bodies is halved and the distance between them is doubled?
2. T he gravitational force acts on all bodies. Why, then does an apple fall towards earth
but the earth does not move towards the apple?

The formulation of Newtons law of gravitation is a story of human determination and

quest for scientific enquiry. In the first instance, Newtons calculations did not work and
he put aside his papers, in a drawer, for almost 20 years. It was during the advent of a
comet in 1680, and at the prodding of Sir Edmund Halley, his friend, that he again worked
on his calculations and, subsequently, obtained excellent results.

For an interesting explanation, visit the link:

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/circles/u6l3c.cfm

6.6 The Universal Gravitational Constant(G)

The proportionality sign in the Newtons law of gravitation

can be eliminated by putting a constant of proportionality,
denoted by G. The equation then becomes

F = G

m1m2
r2

Here G is called the gravitational constant. It is a universal

Figure 11: Henry Cavendish
constant because the gravitational force between two
bodies placed at a certain distance remains the same,
wherever these bodies may be placed in the universe. The constant G is also
independent of the medium in which the interacting bodies are placed.
The value of G, in SI units, was later on, found to be equal to 6.67 1011 Nm2/kg2.
The units of G are obtained by using the fact that the force has to be expressed
in newtons.

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The numerical value of G would change with a change in the units of

measurement for mass and distance.
The very small value of G points to the fact that the gravitational force is an
extremely weak force. In fact, it is the weakest of all the fundamental forces
(Can you find out, which are the other fundamental forces?) and it becomes
important only when the masses of the bodies involved are very large. That is
why the gravitational force plays such an important role in the case of heavenly
bodies.
http://www.physicsclassroom.com

Concept Probe
1. If there is a gravitational attractive force between all objects, why do we not feel ourselves
attracted towards massive structures in our surroundings?
2. W
 hy is the gravitational force an important force for heavenly (or astronomical)
objects?

The value of G was first measured by an English Physicist, Henry Cavendish in

the eighteenth century. He achieved this by measuring the small force between
lead masses with an extremely sensitive torsion balance. A better method was
later developed by Philipp von Jolly.
As long as the sizes of the objects are small compared to the distance between
them they can be treated as point objects which simplifies considerably the
mathematics of their gravitational interaction. The Sun and Saturn are far enough
(in comparison to their sizes) for them to be treated as point particles.
If the distance between two objects is very large (in comparison to their sizes),
we can take them as point objects. What about the case of bodies on the earth?
For such bodies, the earth does not seem like a point object.
The answer to this dilemma lies in Newtons shell theorem:
A uniform spherical shell of matter attracts a body that is outside the shell as if all the
mass of the shell were concentrated at its center.

According to this theorem, Earth can be regarded as a point mass, located at

the center of Earth and with mass equal to that of Earth. We usually follow

12

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this theorem in all our calculations.

5.7 VECTOR FORM OF NEWTONS LAW OF GRAVITATION

Since force is a vector quantity, it must be

expressed in a vector form. The gravitational
force can also be expressed in a vector form
by attaching a unit vector to the expression for
this force.

r^

2
B

Figure 12: Diagram showing direction of

the gravitational force acting along the
line joining the center of two bodies.

By convention, the direction of unit vector is

always taken as directed from the body experiencing the force (body 1) towards
the body exerting the force (body 2). Therefore,

F = G

m1 m2
r2

If we are calculating the force on body A due to body B, then r will be the unit
vector drawn from A towards B.
It will be imperative to mention here that this vector notation is consistent with
the basic fact that the gravitational force is always an attractive force. This implies
that the gravitational force is a central force, and hence the direction of this force
has to be along the line joining the center of the two bodies.

5.8 PRINCIPLE OF SUPERPOSITION

Newtons law has been stated for two point bodies. How do we calculate the
force on a body if there are more than two bodies interacting with one other?

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The solution to this situation lies in what is called the principle of superposition.
In a group of objects, the net gravitational force, on any one of the objects, is
the vector sum of the forces due to all the other objects. The principle implies
that we first calculate the gravitational force that acts on an object due to each
of the other objects as if all other objects are absent. After doing this for all
possible pairs, the net force on the object under consideration is calculated by
the vector sum of all the forces acting on it.

F 1 = F 12 + F 13 + F 14 + F 15 + ...

Here F 1 is the net force on object 1 due to all the other objects 2, 3, 4, 5,
The Principle of superposition is based on the fact that the gravitational interaction between
two bodies is independent of the presence of other bodies in the neighborhood.
The same concept is applicable to electrostatic force which will be studied in class XII.

Illustration. Three objects of masses 5 kg, 3 kg and 3 kg are placed at the corners

of an equilateral triangle of side 20 cm. Calculate the net gravitational

force on the object of 5 kg.

Solution. The magnitude of the force on object A

due to object B is

FAB = G

mA mB
r2

It is in the direction of AB

Putting the values we get,

FAB 5 109 N

 imilarly, the magnitude of the force on

S
A due to body C is

FAC 5 109 N

It is the direction of AC.

As per the principle of superposition, the net force on the body A is the

vector sum of forces F AB and F AC . Applying the laws of vector addition,

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we get the magnitude of the resultant as

FA =

2
2
FAB
+ FAC
+ 2 FABFAC cos 60

FA =

1
(5 10 9 N )2 + (5 10 9 N )2 + 2 (5 10 9 N )2
2

= 5 3 109 N

The resultant force is directed along the bisector of the angle between the

two forces F AB and F AC .

Practice problem
Four equal masses are placed at the corners of a square of
side 2cm as shown in the figure. Another mass is placed at the
centre of the square. Find the magnitude and direction of the
net force on the body kept at the center of the square due to
all the other masses.

Did You Know?

There are two high tides per day in oceans due to the gravitational pull of the moon on
the earth. Surprisingly, although the gravitational pull of Sun is 180 times greater than the
pull of the Moon, the effect of Sun is much less on ocean tides. Search for the possible
reason for this?

Derivation of Keplers law of time periods from Newtons law of

gravitation
For simplicity let us assume that the orbit of the planet is circular.
The gravitational force exerted by the sun on the planets provides the necessary
centripetal force for the planet to remain in its orbit. So, applying the force
equation,

Centripetal force = Gravitational force

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we get

M p v2
r

v =

putting

M p 4 p2 r
T2

GMs M p
r2
2 pr
T
GMs M p
r2
4 p2
GMs

T2 =

3
r

The quantity in the parentheses is a constant that depends only on the mass
Ms of the central massive body which is the Sun in this case. It can also be the
Earth if we are talking of the motion of an artificial satellite.
\

T2 r3

This, as you have learnt above, is Keplers third law for planetary motion.

6.9 Acceleration due to Gravity

We assume that the Earth is a uniform sphere of mass M and radius R. We can
assume then that the mass of earth is concentrated at its center.
The gravitational force of Earth, on a particle of mass m, at a distance r from
the center of Earth, is given by Newtons Law as follows:

F =

GMm
r2

(i)

where M is the mass of the earth.

This force gives rise to an acceleration in the particle which is called the
acceleration due to gravity.

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Applying Newtons second law, force on a body can be expressed as

F = ma

(ii)

Both the expressions (i) and (ii) are measuring the same force in two different
ways.
m

Hence, from the two equations (i) and (ii), we get

ma =

a =

GMm
r2

GM
r2

We use the special symbol g for this acceleration and

call it as the acceleration due to gravity.
Thus, the acceleration due to gravity (g) is the acceleration
produced on a body, on, or near, the earths surface, due
to the gravitational pull of earth.
We have

g =

GM
R2

Aristotle taught that heavy objects fall faster than light objects. Galileo argued that all
objects, irrespective of their mass, should take the same time to fall to the ground from
a given height. Do you agree with Galileo? If so, why?
Search the internet for Galileos Pisa experiment. It is said that Galileo went to the top of
the tower of Pisa and dropped bodies of various masses and showed that they all take
the same time to fall to the ground.

For points lying very close to the surface of earth, we put r = R, the radius of
the earth. We can, therefore, express acceleration due to gravity (g) as

g =

GM
R2

For earth, taking M = 6 1024 kg and R = 6400 km, we get g = 9.8 m/s2. However,
it must be noted that the value of 9.8 m/s2 is an average value and the value
of g varies on earth from one place to another because of various factors.
On a given planet, the average value of acceleration due to gravity is the
same for all objects and is independent of the mass of the object. In fact, it is

Unit 6 : G
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17

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a characteristic constant for that planet as it depends only on the mass and
radius of that planet.

Illustration. Find the value of g on a planet whose mass is half that of earth and
radius twice that of earth. Given g on earth = 9.8 m/s2.

Soltuion. In any such question, the best way is to write two equations:

Value of g on earth

gp =

Re2

GM p
Rp2

Inserting given values,

GM e

Value of g on planet

ge =

We get

R 1 1 1
= e =
=
M e Rp 2 4 8
ge
1
gp = 9.8 ms2 = 1.225 ms2
8

gp

Mp

1.2 ms2
At the time when Cavendish determined the value of G, there was lot of excitement the
world over. In fact, Cavendishs determination of G was publicized by the popular statement
Cavendish weighed the earth. Can you explain how knowing the value of G, it is possible
to calculate the mass of the Earth?

Variation in the value of g

The value 9.8 m/s2 for the acceleration due to gravity on Earth is the average
value and is not the same at all places on the earth. It varies due to the following
reasons:
(i) Density of earth is not uniform at all places
(ii) Earth is not a perfect sphere
(iii) The earth has a rotational motion about its own axis.

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Can you explain how variation of gravity can be caused by variation of density in the earths
interior? In fact, variation of gravity inside the earth is a tool for exploration of mineral
and other deposits inside the earth. Search for gravity measurement and exploration of
mineral deposits on the internet for more information on this topic.

It is easy to realize that g would also vary as we go up above the surface of

earth and as we go deep down inside the earth.
Let us now study the variation in the value of g in some detail.

6.9.1 Due to the shape of the earth

The earth is not a perfect sphere. In
fact, the shape of earth is more like an
oblate spheroid. It is bulging out at the
equators and a little compressed at the
poles.

Polar diameter
12,714 km

North Pole

Thus, since

Re > Rp,

we would have

South Pole

ge < gp

Equatorial diameter
12,756 km

Figure 13: Picture showing difference in the radius

of Earth at equator and the poles.

Did You Know?

A person weighs (a little) more at the poles than at the equator.

6.9.2 With height (h)

The value of g at a point P on the surface of earth

g =

GM
R2

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If we go up above the surface of earth,

the value of g at a point P at a height h
from the surface of earth, would be

g =

g

g

( R + h )2

( R + h )2

GM

R2

(i)

We can also write the formula as

Figure 14: Diagram showing point P on earth and
P at a height h from the surface of earth.

This formula is valid for all values of h.

However, it is usually used only when h is
comparable to R.

R2

g
=
g

g = g 1 + h

R2 1 +
R

For h << R, the term 1 + h can be expanded by using binomial theorem.

R

Neglecting higher order terms, we can write

h

g = g 1 2
R

This formula is valid only when the value of h is small compared to R, the radius of earth.
If this condition is not satisfied, we use equation (i) above.

Illustration 3. At what height above the surface of the earth, will the acceleration
due to gravity be 36% of its value on the surface of earth? Radius
of earth = 6400km.

Solution. Note the fact that the change in g is of about 64%. Such a large change
will not be possible at a small height. Hence it will be incorrect to use the
formula valid only for small heights.

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Unit 6 : G
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We use instead the formula

R2

g
=
g

( R + h )2

Putting g = 0.36 g, and taking square root of both sides,

we get h =

2R
3

Illustration 4. Find the value of g at a height of 32 km above the surface of

earth.

Solution. In this question, the height at which g is to be calculated is small compared
to R. Thus, we can use the formula valid for h < < R.

Putting values, we get

g = g 1 2
R

32

6336

g = g 1 2
= g

6400
6400
g =

99
g = 99% of value of g on the surface of earth
100

 et us see what happens when the student uses the incorrect formula in a
L
given case

Illustration 5. Find the value of g at a height equal to the radius of earth.

Solution. Note that in this question, the value of height is not small compared to
R; in fact it is equal to the radius of earth. Ignoring this fact, if a student
uses the formula
h

g = g 1 2
R

which is actually valid only for small heights,

the student gets

g = g 1 2
R

g = g

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 he answer is completely wrong because a an invalid formula has been

T
used.

The right approach is to use the formula

g
R2
=
g
( R + h )2

Putting the value of h = R, we get

g
R2
=
g
( R + R )2

R2
g
=
g
4R2

g =

g
4

try this
At what height above the surface of the earth, will the value of g be 5% of its value on
the surface of earth? Given R = 6400 km.

6.9.3 With depth

The value of g also varies as we go deep inside the earth. It will be easier to
derive the result, if we convert the expression for g in terms of the density,
rather than the mass, of the earth.
We know,

g =

GM
R2

Assuming earth to be a sphere of uniform mass density , we can write

M = 4 pR3r
3

Substituting in the formula for g, we get

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Unit 6 : G
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g = 4 pRGr
3

cbse-i

I n terms of the formula derived above the value of g at a depth d can be expressed
as
g = 4 pG(R d)r

This is because, the point, at a depth d below the surface, is a surface point
on a sphere of radius (R d) and it is only this sphere that contributes to the
gravitational force for a particle located at this depth.
Thus,

or

d
g
= 1
R
g

d
g = g 1

Did you note that at the center of earth, i.e for d = R, the acceleration due to
gravity becomes zero.

Concept Probe
1. A
 body of weight mg is taken to the centre of the earth. What would be its mass
there?
2. D
 raw a graph showing variation of the value of g with distance from the centre of
earth.

For a description of how gravity actually varies as we go deep into the

earth
http://www.schoolscienceguru.com

Illustration 6. At what depth, below the surface of the earth, the value of g is
same as that at a height of 64 km above the surface of earth?

Solution. Value of g, at a height of 64 km is given by

g = g 1 2

Value of g at a depth d is given by

g = g 1 2

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 ince the question says the value of g at height = value of g at a depth d,

S
we have

g 1 2

We get

or

h
R

g 1

2h = d

d = 128 km

Did You Know?

Variation of g on the surface of the Earth

It is well know that the acceleration due to gravity (g) for the earth, does not have the
same value for all points on its surface. g has its maximum value of the poles and its
minimum value at the equator. How can we understand this variation in g?
A simple explanation for this variation can be given by saying that the earth is not a perfect
sphere and its polar radius is (slightly) less than its equatorial radius. A particle, on the
poles, would, therefore, be (slightly) nearer to the centre of the earth than, when it is at
the equator. If would, therefore, experience a (slightly) greater gravitational force due to
the earth at the poles. This implies a (slightly) higher value for g at the poles compared
to its value at the equator.
The difference between the equatorial and the polar
radii, however, cannot alone explain the observed
difference between the values of g at the two places.
There has to be another cause for the observed
difference.
The other cause is associated with the rotation of the
earth around its axis. A particle P, at a latitude l, moves
in a circular path (of radius r = R cos l) around this
axis.

N R cos l

l
O

Equator

It would, therefore, need a centripetal force (= mrw2) to

stay in its circular path. Where from does it get this required centripetal force.

The earth exerts a gravitational force =

GMm
R

= mg on this particle (of mass m) and this

force is directed radially in wards along the direction PO. The particle needs a centripetal
force (= mrw2 = mw2R cos l) directed along PN. We can now say that a part of the earths
gravitational force, on the particle, gets used up in providing this centripetal force. The
effective gravitational force, experienced by the particle, is, therefore, the difference of a

GMm

force F1 = 2 = mg directed along PO and a force F2 (= mw2R cos l) directed along

R
PN.

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Unit 6 : G
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Simple calculations, based on the parallelogram law of vector addition, lead us to the
formula

mgl = m (g2 + R2w4 2gRw2 cos2 l)1/2

2 R2
gl = g 1

cos

R 2 4
l+ 2
g

1/2

Since Rw2 is a small quantity, we can neglect R2w4 and higher terms. Then

R2

gl = g 1
cos2 l

The effective value of g, i.e. gl is, therefore, dependent on l, the latitude of the place. gl,
clearly, has its minimum value at the equator where l = 0. As the poles (l = 90), gl = g
and this is the maximum value of g.
It is worth mentioning here that this causethe rotation of the earth about its own
axisis the main cause for the observed difference between the values of g at the poles
and at the equator.

6.10 Gravitational Field

There are some forces in nature which can act even when the interacting bodies
are not in direct contact with each other. Such forces are called action-at-adistance forces. The gravitational, electrostatic and magnetic forces are well know
examples of such forces. On the other hand, there are forces which act only when
bodies are in direct contact. Frictional, viscous and muscular forces are some
examples of such contact forces
The action-at-a-distance, or non-contact forces, forces which can act even when
the bodies are not in direct contact, are usually discussed on the basis of the
concept of their associated field. For the gravitational force, we use the concept
of the gravitational field.

Body (source)
The gravitational field, of a body is defined as the space around this body in
which its gravitational force can be experienced by other bodies.

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An alternative way to explain the gravitational attraction between two bodies

is to imagine that each body creates around it a force field that causes other
bodies to be attracted to it.
It is important to realize that to verify the existence of a gravitational field, a
test body has to be brought into the region.
The body which creates the field is called the source body and the one which
is brought to test the existence of this field is called the test body.
The value of gravitational field at a point (also called gravitational field intensity)
is defined as the force experienced by a unit mass at that point.
We have

F =

GMm
r2

The gravitational field

E =

F GM
=
m
r2

It is a vector quantity. The direction of the gravitational field is same as the

direction of the gravitational force and since the gravitational force is always
attractive, the gravitational field is always directed towards the center of the
source body creating the field.
S. I. unit of gravitation field is N/kg.
The test body has to be a body whose mass is very small as compared to that of the
source body. This eliminates the possibility of the disturbance of the gravitational field
of source body by the field produced by the test body.

On the surface of earth, r = R. Hence the magnitude of the gravitational field

of the earth on its surface will be
E =

GM
R2

Notice, that this expression is similar to the expression for the acceleration due
to gravity on the surface of the earth.
Acceleration due to gravity is actually a measure of the gravitational field of earth. It is
always directed towards the center of Earth. The direction to the centre of the earth is
called the vertical direction.

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Illustration 7. The distance between earth and moon is 3.8 105 km and the

mass of earth is 81 times the mass of the moon. Find the position
of a point, on the line joining the earth to moon, where the net
gravitational field, due to the two, equals zero. Given Radius of
earth = 6400 km.

Solution. As we know, the gravitational force being a central force, the gravitational
field is directed along the line joining the center of the two mass bodies.
In this case, the two bodies are the Moon and Earth.
The point, where the net gravitational field is zero, lies on this line joining
the Earth and Moon. At this point, the gravitational field of the Earth will
be equal and opposite to the gravitational field of the Moon.

 s we already know, the directions of the two field being opposite to each
A
other, we need equate only the magnitudes of the two fields.

 et the gravitational field be zero at a point P at a distance x from Earth.

L
The distance of this point, from the Moon, is (r x), where r = distance
between Earth and Moon.

Substituting the values given in the question,

GMe
x

81 Mm
x

GMm
(r x )2

Mm
(r x )2

Hence

x = 9(r x)

x = 0.9r = 3.42 105 m from the earth

6.11 GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL ENERGY

We are already familiar with the concept of Potential Energy. The present topic
is an extension of the same discussion.
In general, the term Potential Energy (U) is defined as the energy associated
with an arrangement, or configuration, of a system of objects, exerting forces
on each other.

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For potential energy to exist, there must be an interaction between the particles
of the system. i.e. the particles must exert forces on each other. The concept of
potential energy can also be associated with a field.
One of the most common examples of potential energy is the Gravitational
potential energy. In this case the associated field is the gravitational field. When
a body is moved away or towards earth (or any other massive body), in the
gravitational field of the earth, the configuration of the earth body system is
being changed. To facilitate this change, some work has to be done which can
be viewed as having got converted into the gravitational potential energy of
the system.
For the earth body system, we define the gravitational potential energy, at a
given point, as the work done in bringing the body, of mass m, from infinity
to that point, in the gravitational field without any acceleration.

dx
r

Figure 15: A body of mass m is being brought from infinity to a point P at distance r from the
center of Earth

Suppose a body of mass m is being brought from infinity to a point P at a

distance r from the center of the earth of mass M.
Let A be a point in the path when the body is at a distance x from the centre
of earth.
Gravitational force on m at the point A, is given by

F =

GMm
x2

This is the force acting on the body due to the gravitational pull of earth. Since,
our definition says that the body must move without acceleration, we need to
think of an equal and opposite (external) force being exerted on the body.
Work done, in a small displacement dx, would be

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dW = F dx

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\ The work done, by the gravitational force, in moving the body, from x =
to x = r, is
W =

W =

dW = F dx

GMm
x2

W = GMm

dx

dx

1 1
W = GMm

W = GMm

(a)

This work W can be regarded as stored in the system of bodies as the gravitational
potential energy U.
\

U = GMm
r

Gravitational potential energy, being work done, is a scalar quantity. Its S.I.
unit is joule (J)
The maximum value of gravitational potential energy is zero for the point at infinity. As
it comes closer to earth, it loses some of its potential energy and attains a lower value
of this energy.
What happens to the energy that a particle loses when it falls in a gravitational field? This
energy is radiated away. When a large number of particles fall in a very strong gravitational
field of a black hole, they radiate energy in the form of X-rays .
It is the detection of this X-ray signal that gives a clue to the presence of a black hole at
that location. For more information carryout a search on the internet for the detection
of black holes.

The negative sign in the gravitational potential energy denotes that the system
is losing some of its potential energy as it comes close to earth.
Negative sign also implies that the force responsible, for the gravitational
potential energy, is an attractive force.

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Negative sign also denotes that the system is in a bound state i.e. it cant break
apart on its own.
The gravitational potential energy is a property of the system of two particles
and not of either particle alone. However, for systems like earth body, we
often say that it is the potential energy of the body because any change, in the
potential energy of the system, almost entirely appears as the change in the
kinetic energy of the body.

Illustration 8. Find the change in the gravitational potential energy of a body of

mass 50 kg, when it is moved from the surface of the earth to a

point at a height twice the radius of earth. Given radius of earth
= 6.4 106 m and g = 9.8 m/s2.

Solution. Initial potential energy

Ui =

and final potential energy,

Uf =

Uf =

DU = Uf Ui =

DU =

GMm GMm

3R
R

2GMm
3R

Here we can make a substitution:

30

GMm
3R

\ Change in potential energy

GMm
R+h

Putting h = 2R, we get

GMm
R

g =

GM
R2

GM
= gR
R

Putting the values, we get change in potential energy = 2.09 109 J

Unit 6 : G
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DU =

2
gRm
3

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Did You Know?

Gravitational Red Shift

The light, from a massive star, can be said to undergo a gravitational red shift. This implies
a (very slight) increase in the wavelength of the light emitted (by the star) due to the
gravitational force exerted on the emitted photons by the star itself.
A formula for the gravitational red shift can be obtained by assuming a photon of frequency
n to have an energy h n and a mass h

c2

When the photon is on the surface of the star, it has, in addition to its intrinsic energy h
n, a gravitational potential energy equal to

GM hn
.
R c2

At a far off point, the photon energy would be h n (n = frequency of photon when it is
very far away from the star).
Hence, by principle of energy conservation,

GM hn

. = hn
h n +
R c2

GM

Rc 2

n = n 1

or

c
GM
c
= 1 2
l
l
Rc

l = l 1

= l 1 +

GM

Rc 2

GM

Rc 2

GM
2
Rc

<< 1

GM
l l
=
l
Rc 2

This formula gives the fractional gravitational red shift, produced in a line of wavelength
l, due to the gravitational field of the star emitting this line.

The gravitational red shift is usually a very small quantity. If becomes important in objects
like the neutron stars and black holes because of their strong gravitational fields. In fact,
the observation of gravitational red shift is an indication that the source of radiation is a
very compact object having a strong gravitational field.

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6.12 Gravitational Potential (V)

Gravitational potential energy has been defined as the energy of a particle in

a gravitational field. Another way to express the potential energy at a point
is by using the concept of the Gravitation potential (V) at that point in the
gravitational field.
The gravitational potential (V), at a point, is defined as the work done in bringing
a body of unit mass from infinity to that point in the gravitational field without
any change in its kinetic energy.
As discussed above, the work (W) done in bringing a body of mass m, from
infinity to a distance r from the (heavier) body, of mass M, is given by

W = GMm

V = W = GM

The SI unit of potential is J/kg. It is a scalar quantity.

Unlike gravitational potential energy, which is a property of the particle,
gravitational potential can be viewed as the property of the space surrounding
the source body.
By calculating the gravitational potential, we can assigne values to different point
in the space. Each of these values measures the work done in bringing a body
of unit mass from infinity to the point under consideration.
Thus if gravitational potential at a point is say 10 J/kg, its implies that 10 J
work needs to be done in bringing a body of 1 kg from infinity to that point.
Hence, if a body of 2 kg is brought from infinity to that point, the work done
would equal 20 J and so on.
Hence, if we know the gravitational potential at a point, we can calculate the
gravitational potential energy at that point by the formula

U = mV

where m = mass of the body coming from infinity to that point.

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6.13 Escape Speed (Ve)

If you throw a ball up, it reaches a height and comes back to your hands. As
the initial speed is increased, the maximum height attained also increases. The
minimum speed with which the body is thrown so that it never comes back and
reaches a point where the earths gravitational field ceases is called the escape
speed.
We can obtain an expression, for the escape speed, as follows:
If a body of mass m, is thrown with a speed ve,
the total Initial energy of the body

Ei = K.E. + P.E.

Ei =

1
GMm
mve2 +

2
R

Let this body come to rest only after reaching the point at infinity
We then have the final energy of the body at infinity,

Ef = 0 + 0

because at infinity both K.E. and P.E. are zero.

Applying the law of conservation of energy,
We have
\
\
\

Ei = Ef
1
GMm
mve2
=
2
R

1
GMm
mve2 =
2
R

ve =

2GM
R

The escape speed, for a planet, is thus seen to depend upon the mass and the
radius of the planet. It is independent of the mass of the body thrown. The

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equation can be used to obtain escape speed for any astronomical body provided
we substitute the mass and radius of the relevant astronomical body.
Substituting the values for mass and radius, the escape speed for earth is = 11.2
km/s
Since g =

GM
R2

, we have
GM = gR2

ve = 2gR

The escape speed v does not depend on the direction in which the object (or
projectile) is thrown, or fired. However, it is helpful if the projectile is fired in
the direction of the rotation of the planet.

Did You Know?

Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, located at Sriharikota, a spindle shaped island on the
East Coast of Andhra Pradesh, is the spaceport of India. This island was chosen in 1969 for
setting up of a satellite launching station. Rockets are launched eastward to take advantage
of the eastward speed due to Earths rotation.
Our universe has certain bodies called black holes. A black hole is formed when a star
dies. At the end of its life, the star collapses into a highly dense sphere of large mass.
The escape velocity on a black hole is so high that even light cannot escape from it
and thus, it appears to be black and is invisible.

Illustration 9. Earth has a mass 9 times and a radius twice that of Mars. Calculate
the escape velocity on Mars. (Given escape velocity on earth = 11.2 km/s.)

Solution. Escape speed on earth

2GM
R

Escape speed on Mars

34

ve =

Unit 6 : G
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vm =

2GM
R

cbse-i

vm =

2GM
9
R
2

vm =

2 2GM

3
R

vm =

2
v
3 e

vm = 5.28 m/s

Concept Probe
1. Earths atmosphere does not contain lighter gases. Why?
2. Moon doesnt have an atmosphere. Why?

6.14 Motion of satellite

A satellite can be viewed as a smaller mass body revolving around a more

massive body. Thus, the moon is a satellite of earth and earth itself can be
regarded as a satellite of Sun.

Orbital speed (Vo)

If a satellite of mass m is revolving around a planet of mass M in an orbit of
radius r, then for its equilibrium, we have

\

mv02
r

GMm

v0 =

GM
r

r2

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But

r = R + h

where R = radius of the planet and h = height of

satellite above the surface of the planet
\

v0 =

GM
R+h

For small heights, R + h R

\

v0 =

GM
=
r

Figure 16: Diagram showing a satellite

of mass m revolving around a planet of
mass M at a distance r from its centre

gR

where we have substituted GM = GR2.

It is thus seen that for near earth satellites
v0 =

ve

11.2

km/s
=
2 2

= 7.92 km/s

Time Period (T)

We have

T = 2 pr
v0

T = 2pr

r
GM

T = 2p

( R + h )3
r3
= 2p
GM
GM

T = 2p

R3
GM

T = 2p

T = 2p

For h << R, R + h R

R3
gR 2
R
g

Substituting the relevant values, we get T 84 minutes for the near earth
satellites.

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Note that the time period and orbital speed for a satellite is independent of the
mass of the satellite. In fact, it depends only on the mass of the planet and the
radius of the orbit of the satellite.

Energy of a satellite
A satellite in its orbit, possesses K.E. due to its rotational motion and P.E. due
to its position with respect to the Earth.
Kinetic Energy
K.E. =

1
mv02
2

Substituting the value of the orbital speed v0 we get

K.E. =

1 GMm
2 r

Potential Energy

P.E. =

GMm
r

Total Energy

E = K.E. + P.E.

E =

E =

1 GMm GMm
+

2 r
r

GMm
2r

Remember the relation

E = K.E. =

P.E.
2

The negative sign in the total energy indicates that the satellite Earth system is a bound
system. i.e. the satellite is bound to Earth and will not leave the orbit unless energy E is
given to it.
The maximum value of the total energy is at infinity and this Max. Energy = 0

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Types of satellites
Satellites are usually classified according to the type of orbit they are in. There
are four types of orbit associated with satellites. It is the type of orbit that
dictates a satellites use.

Low Earth Orbits

These satellites revolve in low orbits and have very high orbital speeds. These
satellites complete one revolution in about 90 minutes. These orbits have very
short lifetimes of the order of weeks, The corresponding period is of the order
of decades for geostationary satellites. These satellites are generally used for
spying and for mapping purposes.

Sun-Synchronous orbits
Meteorological satellites are often placed in a sun-synchronous or heliosynchronous
orbit. These satellites are in polar orbits. The orbits are designed so that the
satellites orientation is fixed relative to the Sun throughout the year, allowing
very accurate weather predictions to be made. Most meteorological satellites
orbit the Earth 15 to 16 times per day.

Geosynchronous satellites
Earth-synchronous or geosynchronous satellites are placed into orbit so that
their period of rotation exactly matches the period of Earths rotation about its
axis. They take (nearly) 24 hours to make one rotation. The plane of orbit for
these satellites is generally not the equatorial plane. The satellites are placed in
highly elliptical orbits which enable them to appear to hover above one point
on the Earth for most of the day. These satellites are used for communication
and GPS (Global Positioning System) purposes.

Geostationary satellites
The majority of communications satellites are in fact geostationary satellites.
Geostationary satellites like geosynchronous satellites, take (nearly) 24 hours to
complete a rotation. However, geostationary satellites are positioned directly
over the equator and their path follows the equatorial plane of the Earth. As a

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result geostationary satellites dont move North or South during the day and
appear to be permanently fixed above one point on the equator of the Earth.
Most video or T.V. communications systems use geostationary satellites.
Geosynchronous and geostationary satellites are typically orbiting at 35,788 km
(22,238 miles) above the surface of the earth (42,000 km from its centre).
Modern satellites have a mass of several thousand kilograms, compared with
just 180 kilograms for the first man made satellite, the Sputnik. Modern satellites
are placed in space using launch vehicles like the Arianne Rocket or the Space
Shuttle. Once in space, most satellites obtain their power requirements from the
Sun using solar panels.

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Post Content
Student Worksheet 1
Q.1 What will be the nature of graph of the change in the acceleration due to gravity
and depth below the surface of the earth?
Q.2 An object is taken from the surface of earth to a height equal to the radius of
the earth. What will be the change in its potential energy?
Q.3 The time period of a satellite in a circular orbit of radius R is T. What will be
the time period of another satellite in a circular orbit of radius 4R?
Q.4 How will the orbital velocity of a satellite change if it were to be brought closer
to the surface of the planet?
Q.5 What will be the time period of a pendulum in a satellite revolving around the
earth?
Q.6 A man can jump six times as high on moon as on earth. Give reason for the
same.
Q.7 If there is a force of attraction between all objects, why do we not feel ourselves
sticking to massive buildings?
Q.8 A clock, controlled by a pendulum, when taken from the planes to mountains,
slows down. Why?
Q.9 The sun is continuously attracting earth with a strong gravitational force. Why
does the earth not fall towards the sun?
Q.10 An astronaut, while revolving in a circular orbit at a height H (<<R) from the
surface of the Earth happens to release a small packet outside. Calculate the time
the packet will take to reach the earth.

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Post Content
Student Worksheet 2
Q.1 Calculate the force of attraction between two balls each of mass 1 kg, when their
centers are separated by 10 cm. G = 6.67 1011 Nm2/kg2.
Q.2 Three equal masses, of m kg each, are fixed at the vertices of an equilateral triangle
A m
ABC of side 1 m, as shown in the figure.

(a) What is the force acting on a mass 2 m

placed at the centroid G of the triangle?

(b) What would be this force if the mass at

the vertex A is doubled?

Q.3 If the radius of the Earth shrinks by 2%, keeping

the mass constant, find the percentage change
in the value of acceleration due to gravity.

2m
G

Bm

Cm

Three equal masses are placed at the

three vertices of the DABC. A mass 2
m is placed at the centroid G.

Q.4 How far from the surface of the Earth would the
acceleration due to gravity become 8% of its value on the surface of the Earth?
Q.5 Find the value of acceleration due to gravity in a mine at a depth of 80 km from
the surface of earth. (Radius of earth = 6400 km)
Q.6 A body is projected vertically upwards from the surface of the earth so as to just
reach a height equal to the radius of the earth. Neglecting friction of air, calculate
the speed with which it was projected. Mass of earth = 6 1024 kg, Radius of
earth = 6400 km.
(7.8 km/s)
Q.7 A rocket is fired vertically from the surface of Mars with a speed of 2 km/s. If
20% of its initial kinetic energy is lost due to Martian atmospheric resistance,
how far will the rocket go from the surface of Mars before returning back. Mass
of mars = 6.4 1023 kg Radius of mars = 4000 km, G = 6.67 10-11 Nm2/kg2
Q.8 A Saturn year is 29.5 times that of Earth. How far is Saturn from earth if earth
is 1.5 108 km away from sun?
Q.9 The distance of the planet Jupiter from the sun is 5.2 times that of the earth. Find
the period of the jupiters revolution around the sun.
(11.85 years)

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Post Content
Student Worksheet 3
Q.1 Assuming the earth to be sphere of radius R (= 6360 km), calculate its average
density.

(Given: G = 6.67 1011 Nm2 kg2 and g = 9.8 ms2).
Q.2 At what point, between the earth and the sun, would the net gravitational force
on any object, due to these two, become zero?
Given: Radius of earths orbit = 1.5 1011 m,
mass of sum = 2 1030 kg

and mass of earth = 6 1024 kg)

Q.3 Show that the value of acceleration due to gravity at a point at a height nearly,
equal to 43% of the radius of the earth, becomes 50% of its value on the surface
of the earth.
Q.4 Compare the time periods of a given simple pendulum on a planet X, and the
earth. Given that the mass and radius of the planet X, both have values 3 times
those of the earth.
Q.5 Two particles, of masses m1 and m2, are placed a distance d apart. If the
net gravitational field due to these two masses becomes zero at a point p
on the line goining them, show that the gravitational potential at p equal

G
m1 + m2 2 m1m2 .
d

Q.6 A particle is imagined to fall down, from rest, to the surface of the earth from a
point that is

(i) very very far away

(ii) at a height equal to 10R (R = Radius of earth).

Calculate the ratio of the velocities of the particle, on reaching the surface of the
earth, in the two cases.

Q.7 A satellite is orbiting the earth in a close to the earth orbit. What is likely to happen
to this satellite if its speed were to suddenly increase by a factor of

2?

Q.8 An astronaut, inside a man-made satellite, is regarded as being in a state of

weight lessens. Why cant we say the same for an astronaut on the moon which
is also a (natural) satellite of the earth?

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Q.9 The most abundant gas in naturehydrogenis almost absent in the earths
atmosphere. Why?
Q.10 Would the escape speed, needed by an object to escape from the earth, change
with a change in the

(i) location of the point of projection?

(ii) height of the point of projection?

Explain your answers.

Q.11 The radii of two planets are r1 and r2 and their (surface) acceleration due to
gravity, have values g1 and g2. Find the ratio of the escape speeds for these two
planets.
Q.12 The total energy, kinetic energy and potential energy, of a satellite orbiting the
earth, equal E, K and U respectively. State the relation between E, K and U.
(U = 2E = 2K)
Q.13 If a satellite, orbiting around the earth, were to suddenly lose height, how would
this affect the

(i) speed of the satellite?

(ii) time period of the satellite?

Justify your answers.

14. Two points, A and B, are at distances d1 and d2 (d2 > d1) from the centre of the
earth. The difference, in the gravitational potential energy (DU) of a mass m,
when it is moved from point A to point B, without acceleration, was calculated
by
1
1

d1 d2

(i) student X as: DU = GMm

(ii) student Y as: DU = mg (d2 d1)

where M is the mass of the earth, g is the acceleration due to gravity on the
surface of the earth and G is the universal gravitational constant.

Comment on the range of value of d1 and d2

where

(a) both students are likely to be correct

(b) only one of the students is likely to be correct.

Support your answer with adequate reasoning.

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Post Content
Student Worksheet 4

Q.1 The gravitational field in a region of space is given by E = (4i + 6 j ) N/kg. Show
that the work done, by the gravitatational field, when a particle is moved on the
line (6x + 2y = 10), is zero.
Q.2 A satellite, of mass 1000 kg, is supposed to orbit the earth at a height of 2000 km
above the earths surface. Find its (a) orbital speed (b) K.E. and (c) time period.
Mass of earth = 6 1024 kg.
Q.3 If earth, with mass 6 1024 kg, were to reduce to a black hole with escape speed
equal to the speed of light, find the radius of that black hole.
Q.4 A body is projected from the surface of earth with a speed equal to half the
escape speed of earth. How far above the surface of earth will it reach?
Q.5 A particle is fired vertically upwards with a speed of 15 km/s. Find the speed
with which it will travel in space. Assume only earths gravitational influence to
be acting on the particle.
Q.6 Two particles, of masses M and m, are kept a distance x apart. Find the position
of the point, if any, where the net

44

(i) gravitational field

(ii) gravitational potential,

due to these two particles, becomes zero.

Unit 6 : G
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Post Content
Student Worksheet 5
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
Q.1 If the acceleration due to gravity on the surface of the earth (of radius R) is g,
the gain in potential energy of a body, of mass m, when raised from the surface
to a height R would be
R

4

(a) mg

(e) 4 mgR

(b) mg

R

2

(c) mgR

(d) 2 mgR

Q.2 Acceleration due to gravity g at the center of the earth is

(a) 9.8 m/s2

(b) 4.9 m/s2

(c) infinite

(d) zero

Q.3 If the ratio of the radii of the orbits of mars and earth around the Sun is 1.526,
the time period of mars (in earth years) would be (nearly)

(a) 1.89 years

(b) 32 years

(c) 45 years

(d) 48 years

Q.4 If a satellite of mass m is revolving around the earth at a distance r from its
centre, its total energy is

(a)

2GMm

r

(b)

GMm

r

(c)

GMm

2r

(d)

GMm
2r

Q.5 A satellite is orbiting around the earth (and close to it) with a total energy E. If
the satellites kinetic energy is made 2E,

(a) its period of revolution would get doubled

(b) radius of its orbit would get halved

(c) radius of its orbit would get doubled

(d) the satellite would escape away from the earth.

Q.6 Keplers second law is based upon the

(a) Newtons second law

(b) Law of conservation of energy

(c) Law of conservation of momentum

(d) law of conservation of angular momentum

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Q.7 The average density of a hypothetical planet is twice that of the earth. If the
acceleration due to gravity on the surface of the planet is equal to that of the
earth and if the radius of the earth is R, the radius of the planet must be

(a)

R

4

(b)

R

2

(c) 2R

(d) 4R

Q.8 For a satellite moving in an orbit around the earth, the magnitude of the ratio
of its kinetic energy to its potential energy is

46

(a)

1
2

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(b) 2

(c)

1

2

(d) 2