Mass and Weight

The mass of an object is a fundamental property of the object; a numerical measure of its
inertia; a fundamental measure of the amount of matter in the object. Definitions of mass
often seem circular because it is such a fundamental quantity that it is hard to define in
terms of something else. All mechanical quantities can be defined in terms of mass,
length, and time. The usual symbol for mass is m and its SI unit is the kilogram. While
the mass is normally considered to be an unchanging property of an object, at speeds
approaching the speed of light one must consider the increase in the relativistic mass.
The weight of an object is the force of gravity on the object and may be defined as the
mass times the acceleration of gravity, w = mg. Since the weight is a force, its SI unit is
the newton. Density is mass/volume.

Weight
The weight of an object is defined as the force of gravity on the object and may be
calculated as the mass times the acceleration of gravity, w = mg. Since the weight is a
force, its SI unit is the newton.
For an object in free fall, so that gravity is the only force acting on it, then the expression
for weight follows from Newton's second law.

You might well ask, as many do, "Why do you multiply the mass times the freefall
acceleration of gravity when the mass is sitting at rest on the table?". The value of g
allows you to determine the net gravity force if it were in freefall, and that net gravity
force is the weight. Another approach is to consider "g" to be the measure of the intensity
of the gravity field in Newtons/kg at your location. You can view the weight as a measure
of the mass in kg times the intensity of the gravity field, 9.8 Newtons/kg under standard
conditions.
Data can be entered into any of the boxes below. Then click outside the box to update
the other quantities.

At the Earth's surface, where g=9.8 m/s2 :

The kilogram is the SI unit of mass and it the

almost universally used standard mass unit.
The associated SI unit of force and weight is
the Newton, with 1 kilogram weighing 9.8
Newtons under standard conditions on the
Earth's surface. However, in the US common
units, the pound is the unit of force (and
therefore weight).The pound is the widely
used unit for commerce. The use of the pound
force constrains the mass unit to an
inconveniently large measuring unit called a
"slug". The use of this unit is discouraged, and
the use of exclusively SI units for all scientific
work is strongly encouraged.

Weightlessness
While the actual weight of a person is determined by his mass and the acceleration of
gravity, one's "perceived weight" or "effective weight" comes from the fact that he is
supported by floor, chair, etc. If all support is removed suddenly and the person begins to
fall freely, he feels suddenly "weightless" - so weightlessness refers to a state of being in
free fall in which there is no perceived support. The state of weightlessness can be
achieved in several ways, all of which involve significant physical principles.
Click on any of the examples for further details.

Physical Units
Mechanics is the branch of physics in which the basic physical units are developed. The
logical sequence is from the description of motion to the causes of motion (forces and

torques) and then to the action of forces and torques. The basic mechanical units are those
of

All mechanical quantities can be expressed in terms of these three quantities. The
standard units are the Systeme Internationale or SI units. The primary SI units for
mechanics are the kilogram (mass), the meter (length) and the second (time). However if
the units for these quantities in any consistent set of units are denoted by M, L, and T,
then the scheme of mechanical relationships can be sketched out.
This is an active graphic. Click on any segment for further information.

Gravity
Gravity is the weakest of the four fundamental forces, yet it is the dominant force in the
universe for shaping the large scale structure of galaxies, stars, etc. The gravitational
force between two masses m1 and m2 is given by the relationship:

This is often called the "universal law of gravitation" and G the universal gravitation
constant. It is an example of an inverse square law force. The force is always attractive
and acts along the line joining the centers of mass of the two masses. The forces on the
two masses are equal in size but opposite in direction, obeying Newton's third law.
Viewed as an exchange force, the massless exchange particle is called the graviton.
The gravity force has the same form as Coulomb's law for the forces between electric
charges, i.e., it is an inverse square law force which depends upon the product of the two
interacting sources. This led Einstein to start with the electromagnetic force and gravity
as the first attempt to demonstrate the unification of the fundamental forces. It turns out
that this was the wrong place to start, and that gravity will be the last of the forces to
unify with the other three forces. Electroweak unification (unification of the
electromagnetic and weak forces) was demonstrated in 1983, a result which could not be
anticipated in the time of Einstein's search. It now appears that the common form of the
gravity and electromagnetic forces arises from the fact that each of them involves an
exchange particle of zero mass, not because of an inherent symmetry which would make
them easy to unify.

Examples of Trajectories
Common misconceptions about guns:
A dropped bullet will hit the ground before one which is
fired from a gun.
As shown in the illustration of a horizontal launch, gravity acts the same way
Index
on both bullets, giving them the same downward acceleration and making
them strike the ground at the same time if the bullet is fired horizontally over
Trajectory
level ground.
concepts

Bullets fired from high-powered rifles drop only a few

inches in hundreds of yards.
Fired at twice the speed of sound, a bullet will drop over 3 inches in 100
yards, and at 300 yards downrange will have dropped about 30 inches. Plug
in numbers into the bullet drop calculation to see for yourself. Ammunition
manufacturers contribute to this misconception by stating the drop of their
projectiles as just the extra drop caused by frictional drag compared to an
ideal frictionless projectile.

Drop of a Bullet

If air friction is neglected, then the drop of a bullet fired horizontally can be treated as an
ordinary horizontal trajectory. The air friction is significant, so this is an idealization.

Circular Orbit
Gravity supplies the necessary centripetal force to hold a satellite in orbit about the earth.
The circular orbit is a special case since orbits are generally ellipses, or hyperbolas in the
case of objects which are merely deflected by the planet's gravity but not captured.
Setting the gravity force from the univeral law of gravity equal to the required centripetal
force yields the description of the orbit. The orbit can be expressed in terms of the
acceleration of gravity at the orbit.

The force of gravity in keeping an object in circular motion is an example of centripetal

force. Since it acts always perpendicular to the motion, gravity does not do work on the
orbiting object if it is in a circular orbit.

Inverse Square Law, General

Any point source which spreads its influence equally in all directions without a limit to
its range will obey the inverse square law. This comes from strictly geometrical
considerations. The intensity of the influence at any given radius r is the source strength
divided by the area of the sphere. Being strictly geometric in its origin, the inverse square
law applies to diverse phenomena. Point sources of gravitational force, electric field,
light, sound or radiation obey the inverse square law. It is a subject of continuing debate
with a source such as a skunk on top of a flag pole; will it's smell drop off according to
the inverse square law?

Inverse Square Law, Gravity

As one of the fields which obey the general inverse square law, the gravity field can be
put in the form shown below, showing that the acceleration of gravity, g, is an expression
of the intensity of the gravity field.

Inverse Square Law, Electric

As one of the fields which obey the general inverse square law, the electric field of a
point charge can be put in the form shown below where point charge Q is the source of
the field. The electric force in Coulomb's law follows the inverse square law.

Inverse Square Law, Radiation

As one of the fields which obey the general inverse square law, a point radiation source
can be characterized by the relationship below whether you are talking about Roentgens ,
rads, or rems . All measures of exposure will drop off by inverse square law.

The source is described by a general "source strength" S because there are many ways to
characterize a radiation source - by grams of a radioactive isotope, source strength in
Curies, etc. For any such description of the source, if you have determined the amount of
radiation per unit area reaching 1 meter, then it will be one fourth as much at 2 meters.

Coulomb's Law
Like charges repel, unlike charges attract.
The electric force acting on a point charge q1 as a result of the presence of a second point
charge q2 is given by Coulomb's Law:

where 0 = permittivity of space

Note that this satisfies Newton's third law because it implies that exactly the same
magnitude of force acts on q2 . Coulomb's law is a vector equation and includes the fact
that the force acts along the line joining the charges. Like charges repel and unlike

charges attract. Coulomb's law describes a force of infinite range which obeys the inverse
square law, and is of the same form as the gravity force.

Inverse Square Law, Sound

The sound intensity from a point source of sound will obey the inverse square law if there
are no reflections or reverberation. A plot of this intensity drop shows that it drops off
rapidly.

Inverse Square Law, Light

As one of the fields which obey the general inverse square law, the light from a point
source can be put in the form

where E is called illuminance and I is called pointance.

The source is described by a general "source strength" S because there are many ways to
characterize a light source - by power in watts, power in the visible range, power factored
by the eye's sensitivity, etc. For any such description of the source, if you have
determined the amount of light per unit area reaching 1 meter, then it will be one fourth
as much at 2 meters.

Centripetal Force
Any motion in a curved path represents accelerated motion, and requires a force directed
toward the center of curvature of the path. This force is called the centripetal force which
means "center seeking" force. The force has the magnitude

Swinging a mass on a string requires string tension, and the mass will travel off in a
tangential straight line if the string breaks.
The centripetal acceleration can be derived for the case of circular motion since the
curved path at any point can be extended to a circle.

Note that the centripetal force is

proportional to the square of the
velocity, implying that a doubling of
speed will require four times the
centripetal force to keep the motion
in a circle. If the centripetal force
must be provided by friction alone
on a curve, an increase in speed
could lead to an unexpected skid if
friction is insufficient

Centripetal Acceleration
The centripetal acceleration expression is obtained from analysis of constant speed
circular motion by the use of similar triangles. From the ratio of the sides of the triangles:

Centripetal Force Calculation

Centripetal force = mass x velocity2 / radius

Any of the
data values
may be
changed.
When
finished
with data
entry, click
on the
quantity
you wish to
calculate in
the formula
above. Unit
conversions
will be
carried out
as you enter
Note that the conditions here assume no additional forces, like a horizontal
data, but
circle on a frictionless surface. For a vertical circle, the speed and tension must
values will
vary.
not be
forced to be
consistent
until you
click on the
desired
quantity.

Index
Newton's
Laws

Description of Motion in One Dimension

Motion is described in terms of displacement (x), time (t), velocity (v), and acceleration
(a). Velocity is the rate of change of displacement and the acceleration is the rate of
change of velocity. The average velocity and average acceleration are defined by the
relationships:

A bar above any quantity indicates that it is the

average value of that quantity. If the acceleration is
constant, then equations 1,2 and 3 represent a
complete description of the motion. Equation 4 is
obtained by a combination of the others. Click on
any of the equations for an example.

Distance, Average Velocity and Time

The case of motion in one dimension (one direction) is a good starting point for the
description of motion. Perhaps the most intuitive relationship is that average velocity is
equal to distance divided by time:

Distance, Average Velocity and Time

The case of motion in one dimension (one direction)
is a good starting point for the description of
motion. A basic type of calculation may be
explored here by substituting numbers and then
clicking on the bold text of the quantity you wish
to calculate. Make only one substitution at a time
and click the desired quantity -- then you can
repeat with other substitutions. Forms of Motion
Equations

Forms of Motion Equations