How does the mass of an object affect its fall time?

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The fall times of massive objects like the Moon or Jupiter towards Earth are not the same due to their significant mass affecting gravitational interactions. While smaller objects fall at the same rate regardless of mass, larger bodies will experience a stronger gravitational pull, resulting in different fall times. The discussion highlights the need for understanding the mathematics of gravitational forces, which involves calculus. It suggests that learning about the gravitational dynamics of two massive bodies can clarify these concepts. Overall, the interaction between mass and gravitational acceleration is crucial in determining fall times.
Lucw
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Hello

We stop the moon on its orbit around the earth.
Oups. The moon falls on the earth.
Or.
We bring Jupiter at 400000 km from the earth.
And Jupiter falls on the earth.

Are the fall times the same?

Have a nice monday

Lucw
 
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Lucw said:
Are the fall times the same?
No. Fall times will be the same only for objects whose mass is so small that the Earth can be considered as not being accelerated by the falling object. This will not be the case for Moon or Jupiter. In the latter case, it would rather be the Earth that would fall on Jupiter rather than the other way around!
 
Lucw said:
Are the fall times the same?
Hi Lucw. As mentioned by @DrClaude they are not the same. The more massive objects will accelerate more quickly toward each other because the attractive force is higher.

Based on this thread and your last one, it looks like it would help for you to learn more about the math behind the gravitational force between two massive bodies. Have you been able to learn some calculus yet, or is that coming up? There are a couple of previous PF threads that discuss the motion of two massive bodies in space that are pulled together by gravitational forces. In the general case, the math involves calculus, but it can be simplified to an Excel spreadsheet (with plots) if that would be more intuitive for you. :smile:
 
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