Question

Question #fee78

Answer 1

Mass and distance or mass and `g`, depending on the situation.

Explanation:

If you are referring to the force of gravity acting on a stationary object relative to the surface of the earth, we have:

`color(darkblue)(F_g=mg)`

where `m` is the mass of the object and `g` is the gravitational acceleration (free fall) constant.

Therefore, in this case, the force of gravity acting on the object is dependent upon the mass of the object and the acceleration `g`. It is worth noting that `g` varies from one massive object to another (e.g. between planets), and the mass/size of the planet greatly affects the value of `g`. On Earth, `g=9.81m/s^2`.

If you mean the force of gravity exerted by a massive object such as a planet on some other object at some distance away from it, we have the equation:

`color(crimson)(F=(Gm_1m_2)/r^2)`

where `G` is the gravitational constant (different from `g`), `m_1` is the mass of the first object, `m_2` is the mass of the second object, and `r` is the distance from the center of one object to the center of the other

Therefore, in this case, the force of gravity depends on the mass of each of the objects in question as well as the distance between their centers. Note that `G` does not vary between objects.