Ariane Faye O.
Betarmos BSED-SCIENCES 3
Electricity and Magnetism
QUESTION
Electrostatic Attraction and Repulsion. Explain why
a piece of paper released near an electrostatic
charge (as on the electrode of an electrostatic
generator) is attracted to it but, after touching it, is
repelled. Are Coulomb forces involved?
Gravitational Field. If the mass on the earth were
uniformly distributed in a thin spherical shell of the
same radius as the earth, what would the
gravitational field be outside the shell? Inside the
shell?
Capacitance of earth. What is the capacitance of
the earth?
ANSWER
The electrostatic force can be the electrostatic
force of repulsion or attraction depending on the
polarity of the two charges. There is a possibility
that the paper is negatively charged while the
electrostatic charge is positive that is why papers
are attracted to it (unlike charges attract, same
charges repel) In the case where the paper is
touched then it repelled, this simply means that the
charges between two objects were made the same
that is why it repelled. The magnitude of the two
charges and the distance between the two charges
affects the electrostatic force. For a system of two
charges, electrostatic forces on the charges are
equal in magnitude but opposite in direction. The
electrostatic force is a conservative force which
means that the work done by the electrostatic force
in a closed loop is zero. The electrostatic force
also depends on the medium at which two charges
are placed and is maximum when the medium is
vacuum.
Inside the shell there will be no mass. When there
is no mass then there will be no gravitational field
produced. If the mass on the earth were uniformly
distributed in a thin spherical shell of the same
radius as the earth, then the gravitational field
inside the shell would be stronger than the
gravitational field outside the shell. This is because
when the mass of the earth is uniformly distributed
it will make a hole exactly at the center then if we
take any point in that cavity, the gravitational field
inside the shell will become zero.
ANSWER: 0. 711x10^-3 Farad or C= 711 microfarad
To find the capacitance of Earth we consider that
the Earth is a spherical conductor with radius R
and total charge Q. In fact, using this assumption
one can determine the capacitance of any planet
and satellite like Mercury, Mars, Moon, etc.
Formula for Earth’s Capacitance:
 Earth and other planets are spherical isolated
capacitors. If R and Q be the radius and the
charge respectively of the Earth, then the electric
potential on the surface of the Earth is, V =
Q/4∏€oR. Where €o is the permittivity of free
space.

Now, from the formula of capacitance we know,

C=Q/V
Then, the Capacitance, C = Q / (Q/4πϵ0R)

It is clear that the capacitance of Earth depends

only on its radius.

References:
Capacitance of Earth in microfarad | formula value | Edumir-Physics (electronicsphysics.com) (n.d.) Retrieved from
https://electronicsphysics.com/capacitance-of-earth-in-microfarad-formula-value/ Retrieved on December 8, 2022.