Activity 3

Gravity, a mysterious force

Imagine that you can travel to every planet of the solar system. How much would you weigh
on each planet? Would your weight change or remain the same?

Scientists can calculate the weight of a person on different planets of the solar system (see
picture below).

In a hypothetical situation, a person weighing 30 kg on earth steps foot on the different

planets within the solar system. His weight is read off a weighing scale and a beam balance,
and recorded below.

Planet Reading on the Reading on the

beam balance (kg) weighing scale (kg)
Mercury 30.0 11.3
Venus 30.0 27.2
Earth 30.0 30.0
Mars 30.0 11.3
Jupiter 30.0 75.8
Saturn 30.0 31.9
Uranus 30.0 26.6
Neptune 30.0 33.7

Source: http://www.iki.rssi.ru/mirrors/stern/stargaze/Spyecraft.htm
Gifted Education Branch, 2009
Answer the following questions:

1. What do you observe about the data recorded using a beam balance versus a
weighing scale?
 The data does not change on the balance beam regardless of the planet but the data
changes on the weighing scale on every planet.

2. *Why do you think there is a difference in the readings obtained using the different
instruments?
 A same amount of gravitational force pulls on both sides of beam balance and 30-kg
mass will balance the beam on all planets. Mass is the amount of matter or substance
that makes up an object and this does not change.
 The amount of gravitational force pulling on the spring varies on different planets, thus
the weight will differ on different planets.

3. Suppose that some time, in the far future, a bowling alley is built on the Moon, where
gravity is 1/6 of what it is on Earth. Would it be easier to roll the ball down the alley?
What makes you say so?

 It would be easier to lift the ball off the floor, but not any easier to get it rolling. (The
mass has not changed – which results in its tendency to remain stationary, and a force
still required in getting it to roll.)

4. An astronaut in a space suit, in the space shuttle bay, tries to push a one-ton scientific
satellite out of the bay, but the satellite proves very hard to move. If it is weightless,
why should it be so?

 In the frame of reference of the space shuttle, it has no weight (weightless), but it still
has one ton of mass to move. [1 ton- 1000kg]

One ton

Source: http://www.iki.rssi.ru/mirrors/stern/stargaze/Spyecraft.htm
Gifted Education Branch, 2009