St.

Mary’s College of Baliuag

Baliuag, Bulacan
SY 2020-2021

ISO 9001:2015 Certified

Certificate No. 01 100 1534708 PAASCU Level III Accredited

Subject: Physics 1 Grade Level: 12 Quarter: Second

Module Number: 9 Topic: Gravity

I. INTRODUCTION
Did you ever had a moment or time where
you just looked blankly at the night sky thinking
about your life and the choices you had or have
to make? That feeling of peace and serenity
that the stary night gives us is really relaxing.
That is why some famous artists try to show
them in their artworks. Familiar with Van
Gogh’s Starry Night?

But for people who are always curious and

fascinated on how things work, many
questions will pop into their mind like, “How do
those things move?” “What are they made of?” Figure 1. Stargazing
“Why do they shine?” (https://i.iheart.com/v3/re/new_assets/5a7a22a22b2ce0dae3c02bf3)

In this module, you will be able to answer at least one of these questions. “How do these
things move?” For you to understand this, you will need the help of two big scientists, Isaac
Newton, and Johannes Kepler. Come and let us know them!

II. THIS MODULE WAS MADE FOR YOU TO:

1. use Newton’s law of gravitation to infer gravitational force, weight, and acceleration due
to gravity.
2. discuss the physical significance of gravitational field.
3. apply the concept of gravitational potential energy in physics problems.
4. calculate quantities related to planetary or satellite motion.
5. for circular orbits, relate Kepler’s third law of planetary motion to Newton’s law of
gravitation and centripetal acceleration.
6. show reverence to the laws of made by man and God.

III. DISCUSSION
A. Presentation of the Lesson
1. Gravity
Galileo’s point of view when it comes to the concept of
gravity is something you are familiar with.

According to Galileo’s theory of motion, Gravity is a

force exerted by the Earth which pulls objects towards it an
acceleration of g = 9.8 m/s2. But what is missing in his
theory is that he didn’t account the idea of the objects’
Figure 1. Galileo Galilei
masses. (https://media.nature.com/lw800/magazi
ne-assets/d41586-020-01316-6/d41586-
020-01316-6_17936604.jpg)

2. Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation

Newton believed that the earth and other planets
rotate in a nearly circular motion around the sun. Thus, the
sun must be exerting a certain type of force on the
planets. He then proposed that gravity is a force that pulls Figure 2. Law of Universal
objects towards each other. Gravitation
(https://image.slidesharecdn.com/042308-law-
of-universal-gravitation-1209496874663534-
9/95/042308-law-of-universal-gravitation-2-
728.jpg?cb=1209471665
 Newton’s law of universal gravitation states that every object in the universe
attracts every other object that has a mass with a force proportional to their masses,
m1 and m2, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. In
equation form,
Legend:

G = proportionality constant
= 6.67 x 10-11 Nm2/kg2

Practice Exercise #1
The moon is in constant orbit around the earth. The distance of the Moon from the Earth
is 384,790 km. What is the gravitational force between the moon and the earth?
(mEarth = 5.98×1024 kg, mMoon = 7.38×1022 kg)

mEarth = 5.98×1024 kg
GIVEN
mMoon = 7.38×1022 kg
d = 384,790 km d = 384,790,000m (converted)

FIND F=?

FORMULA
𝑚1 𝑚2
F=G
𝑑2

SOLUTION
𝑚1 𝑚2
F=G
𝑑2
(5.98 𝑥 1024 𝑘𝑔)(7.38 𝑥 1022 𝑘𝑔)
F = (6.67 x 10-11 Nm2/kg2)( )
(384,790,000𝑚)2
F = 1.98 x 1022 kg

ANSWER F = 1.98 x 1022 kg

Practice Exercise #2
Using the same scenario above, If the distance between them is reduced to ½, then what
happens to Fg?

GIVEN

FIND

FORMULA

SOLUTION

ANSWER
3. Acceleration due to Gravity
Now the value of g that you often use when it comes to computing weights can
also be determined deriving from Newton’s equation on the law of universal gravitation
and Newton’s second law of motion.

Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation:

𝑚1 𝑚2
F=G
𝑑2

Newton’s Second Law of Motion:

F = mg
Then we can equate the two formulas and derive the value of g,
𝑚 𝑚
m1g = G 1 2 2
𝑑 Legend:
𝑚2
g=G
𝑑2 m2 = mass of planet
d = particular distance
from the center of
At the surface of Earth, g = 9.8 m/s2. the planet

4. Escape Velocity
This is the minimum amount of speed that a body
must have in order to “escape” the gravitational strength
a planet has in order to go to outer space without ever
falling back.

Now this speed can be calculated by equating the

kinetic energy of a moving body to the work necessary to
overcome the gravity of the planet, neglecting friction.
Recall that the work needed to overcome gravity is the
gravitational force between the body and the Earth Figure 3. Escape Velocity
(https://miro.medium.com/max/561/1*4
multiplied by the radius of the Earth. In symbols, Cp3qiY-jS8gIFR8F5qOGw.jpeg)

2𝐺𝑀
ve = √
𝑅
𝑚2
The R is the radius of the astronomical body with mass M. Recall that g=G
𝑑2
we can derive another equation for ve, escape velocity, and can be re-written as,
ve = √2𝑔𝑅
Now both formulas here tell us that the mass of the object projected does not and
will not affect its escape velocity on an astronomical body.

5. Kepler’s Laws of Planetary Motion

Now this talk about escape velocity and how gravity
affects bodies in space and how they move is what
fascinated the ancient Greeks into studying science,
Physics! But the one who assisted Newton’s theories
about how planets move was the work published and done
by Johannes Kepler.

Johannes Kepler studied the works of his mentor,

Tycho Brahe, about the motion of the planets around the
sun for about 22 years before he was able to publish ad
formulate his three laws of planetary motion.
Figure 4. J. Kepler
(https://www.thegreatcoursesdaily.com
/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/What-
Einstein-Got-Wrong_What-Johannes-
Kepler-Got-Wrong_QBS_Featured.jpg)
Figure 5. Kepler’s Laws of Planetary Motion
(https://www.helioseducore.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/main-qimg-14c6a797dc0f0a95f6c3b03422d1c801.png)

First Law – Law of Ellipses

“The orbit of every planet follows an ellipse with the Sun at one of the two foci.”
In Layman’s term, planets simply revolve around the sun in an elliptical orbit
and not a spherical one.

Second Law – Law of Equal Areas

“A line joining a planet and the Sun sweeps out equal areas during equal
intervals of time.” To make things simpler, look at the image below.

Based from the illustration, the

shaded areas equally represent 1
month of a planet’s motion around
the sun. It speeds up as goes nearer
to the sun and slows down as it goes
farther from the sun.

Figure 6. Kepler’s Second Law

(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/dlMTlHjmf_CUtNKsVdSbKHztyd2xjofekSzg7qAmYsAphEh7tW4-
JguTPMhVC05sJ-
XB335Zf7nyyeuhx11A9Hr1g2feRr22f75g6fb1beYBhHOahsIO0MKJrGAS9Ovm0Loi0kmE0kUDRmGScw)

Third Law – Harmonic Law / Law of Periods

“The square of a planet's orbital period is proportional to the cube of the
planet’s average distance from the sun.” In symbol,

P2 = a3
Whereas,
P is the planet’s orbital period, in Earth years.
a is the planet’s semi-major axis or distance from the Sun, in AU.

Take Note:

Astronomical unit, is a unit of length effectively equal to the

average distance between Earth and the Sun.
1 AU = 150,000,000,000m
 For additional information about Kepler’s Laws, follow the links provided below.

Kepler’s First Law of Motion – Elliptical Orbits

(Astronomy)
by Socratica
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDHnWptz5Jo&t=1s

Kepler’s Second Law of Motion (Astronomy)

by Socratica
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd3dIGJqRDU&t=5s

Kepler’s Third Law of Motion (Astronomy)

by Socratica
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbXVpdlmYZo

B. LESSON LINKS
1. Everything that has mass, attributes the property of gravity. As a student, how will
you overcome the obstacles in your life that keeps on pulling you down?
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2. The laws of physics govern even the heavenly bodies. As a student, why do you
have to adhere laws of made by man?
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3. Aside from the law of man, we are also governed by the law of God. As a student,
how do you show reverence to the laws commanded by God?
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IV. REMEMBER
• Newton’s law of universal gravitation states that every object in the universe attracts
every other object with a force.
• Acceleration due to gravity of any object on any astronomical body is inversely
proportional to the square distance of separation of the object from the center of any
astronomical body.
• The escape velocity from any astronomical body is the minimum speed an object must
have to escape its gravitational field and not fall back.
• Kepler’s laws of planetary motion include (a) law of ellipses, (b) law of equal areas,
and (c) law of periods