Gravitational force between point masses
13.2What the syllabus asks of you
- understand that, for a point outside a uniform sphere, the mass of the sphere may be considered to be a point mass at its centre
- recall and use Newton’s law of gravitation F = Gm1m2 / r² for the force between two point masses
- analyse circular orbits in gravitational fields by relating the gravitational force to the centripetal acceleration it causes
- understand that a satellite in a geostationary orbit remains at the same point above the Earth’s surface, with an orbital period of 24 hours, orbiting from west to east, directly above the Equator
Read the notes first
Chapter 13: Gravitational force between point masses
Drill this topic
All 31 questions on Gravitational force between point masses, untimed — answer on paper, then mark yourself against the mark scheme.
Make a worksheet
Choose the years and how many questions, then print it with the answers on separate pages.
31 questions
These are structured questions, answered in working rather than by picking an option, so they are not listed here one by one. The drill above puts each in front of you with its mark scheme to check against.