Results for “what is gravitational force” · retrieved September 22, 2026
Gravitational force is the universal, attractive interaction between all objects with mass or energy.
Gravitational force is a fundamental, attractive interaction between all objects that possess mass or energy. It is the weakest of the four fundamental forces in nature but has an infinite range, allowing it to influence everything from falling objects on Earth to the motion of planets, stars, and galaxies. According to Newton's law of universal gravitation, the magnitude of this force is directly proportional to the product of the two masses involved and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers. It acts as a non-contact force, meaning it does not require physical interaction to exert an effect.
Answer details
Non-contact and universal nature
It is a non-contact force that acts along the line joining the centers of mass of two objects, regardless of the distance between them.
Mathematical relationship
The force is calculated using the formula F = G(m1*m2)/r^2, where G is the universal gravitational constant, m1 and m2 are the masses, and r is the distance between them.
Fundamental force status
It is the weakest of the four fundamental forces, yet it is the only one that is not currently part of the Standard Model of Particle Physics.
Role in the universe
Gravity is responsible for holding planets in orbit, creating stars and galaxies, and keeping atmospheres attached to planets.
Sources 8
About this answerGravity - Newton's Law, Universal Force, Mass Attraction | Britannica
Newton discovered the relationship between the motion of the Moon and the motion of a body falling freely on Earth. By his dynamical and gravitational theories, he explained Kepler’s laws and established the modern quantitative science of gravitation. Newton assumed the existence of an attractive force between all massive bodies, one that does not require bodily contact and that acts at a distance. By invoking his law of inertia (bodies not acted
July 20, 1998
6.5 Newton’s Universal Law of Gravitation - College Physics 2e | OpenStax
What do aching feet, a falling apple, and the orbit of the Moon have in common? Each is caused by the gravitational force. Our feet are strained by supporting our weight—the force of Earth’s gravity on us. An apple falls from a tree because of the same force acting a few meters above Earth’s surface. And the Moon orbits Earth because gravity is able to supply the necessary centripetal force at a distance of hundreds of millions of meters. In fact
Publication date not supplied
Learn and try: Gravitational force (article)
Client ChallengeA required part of this site couldn’t load. This may be due to a browser extension, network issues, or browser settings. Please check your connection, disable any ad blockers, or try using a different browser.
Publication date not supplied
What Is Gravity?
Gravity is the force by which a planet or other body draws objects toward its center. The force of gravity keeps all of the planets in orbit around the sun....Why do you land on the ground when you jump up instead of floating off into space? Why do things fall down when you throw them or drop them? The answer is gravity: an invisible force that pulls objects toward each other. Earth's gravity is what keeps you on the ground and what makes things
Publication date not supplied
Gravitational force (video)
Khan AcademyIf you're seeing this message, it means we're having trouble loading external resources on our website.If you're behind a web filter, please make sure that the domains \*.kastatic.org and \*.kasandbox.org are unblocked.Oops. Something went wrong. Please try again.Uh oh, it looks like we ran into an error. You need torefresh. If this problem persists,tell us.Use of cookiesCookies are small files placed on your device that collect
Publication date not supplied
DOE Explains...Gravity
Gravity is the force of fundamental attraction between all things that have mass or energy. It feels powerful to us in our daily lives, but it is by far the weakest of the four known forces in nature. The strong force is the strongest of the forces and it binds nuclei together. The electromagnetic force is the next strongest and governs almost our entire existence from chemistry to our sense of touch and all the properties of light. The weak forc
September 19, 2026
Gravitational Force - an overview
The weight of an object is a force, which is the gravitational force on the object, whereas the mass of an object is an intrinsic property of the object and measures its resistance to change in its state of motion....Every action taking place around us is the result of the gravitational or the electric force. Thegravitational forceis responsible for the motion of falling objects, the motion of the planets around the sun, and even the motions of s
Publication date not supplied
Gravitational Force - GeeksforGeeks
The attractive force between any two objects is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance separating them. Newton's Law of Gravitation or Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation (or Universal Laws of Gravitation) is the Law that leads to the further study of Gravitation and states that all the objects in the universe having any masses always attract each other with a force of attra
Publication date not supplied
Keep exploring
Related on this site
This page was prepared by Seeked from live retrieval on September 22, 2026 and is not continuously updated. Run a fresh search for the latest, or to inspect each source.