Gravitational Pull and Acceleration: Earth vs. Moon

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around gravitational forces and acceleration between the Earth and the Moon, specifically questioning which body exerts a stronger gravitational pull and how their accelerations compare.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore the nature of gravitational forces between the Earth and the Moon, questioning whether they pull on each other equally and how their respective masses affect acceleration. There is also inquiry into the meaning of the force represented in the gravitational formula.

Discussion Status

The conversation is active, with participants providing insights based on Newton's Third Law and discussing the implications of mass on acceleration. There is an acknowledgment of equal gravitational force but differing accelerations due to mass differences.

Contextual Notes

Participants are working within the framework of Newtonian physics and are considering the implications of mass and force in their reasoning. There is a focus on understanding the relationship between force, mass, and acceleration without reaching a definitive conclusion.

justinbaker
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Which pulls harder gravitationally? the Earth on the moon, or the moon on the
earth? Which accelerated more?


i know this is easy, but don't they pull the same, and accelerate the same?
 
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justinbaker said:
Which pulls harder gravitationally? the Earth on the moon, or the moon on the
earth? Which accelerated more?


i know this is easy, but don't they pull the same, and accelerate the same?

If you used the formula F = G M1 M2 / R^2 tell me what does F represent

does F represent the force Earth exerts on the moon or the moon exerts on Earth or both??
 
justinbaker said:
Which pulls harder gravitationally? the Earth on the moon, or the moon on the
earth? Which accelerated more?


i know this is easy, but don't they pull the same, and accelerate the same?

Newton's Third Law gives you the answer to the first part - they pull at each other with equal force. For the second part, ask yourself if the same force is applied to two objects which will undergo the greater acceleration - the more massive object or the less massive object?
 
so they pull the same, but the moon will accelerate more because it has a smaller masss
 

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