Mass, Weight and Gravity

Gravity is the Force of Attraction between All Masses

Gravity attracts all masses, but you only notice it when one of the masses is really really big e.g. a planet - anything ner a pplanet or a star is attracted to it very strongly.

Weight and Mass are Not the same

to understand this you must learn all the facts about mass and weight;

Mass is just the amount of 'stuff' in an object. For any given object this will have the same value anywhere in the Universe.                                                         Weight is caused by the pull of gravity. In most questions the Weight of an object is just the force pulling it towards the centre of the Earth.                                      An object has the same mass whether it's on Earth or on the Moon - but it's weight will be different. A 1kg mass will weigh less on th Moon (aboout 1.6N) han it does on Earth (about 10N) simply because the force of gravity pulling on it is less. Weight is a force measured in newtons. It's measured using a spring balance or newton meter. Mass is not a force. It's measured in kilograms with a mass balnce (an old fashioned pair of balancing scales.)

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