why does an astronaut weigh less on the moon than on Earth?
is it because the gravitational field strength is less on the moon's surface than on Earth's surface
or is it because he/she has less mass on the moon..?
Your first answer is the correct one.
Because the gravity on earth is 6x times more then the gravity on the moon so like if i weighed 53 pounds on earth then i would weight 8.79 on the moon.
Yes, that is correct. An astronaut weighs less on the moon compared to Earth because the gravitational field strength on the moon's surface is significantly weaker than on Earth's surface.
To understand why this happens, we need to consider the concept of gravity and its relationship to mass and distance. Gravity is the force that attracts two objects with mass towards each other. The strength of this force depends on two factors: the mass of the objects involved and the distance between them.
The moon has less mass than Earth, which means it has less gravitational pull. This is because the moon has less overall matter compared to our planet. The force of gravity on the moon is about one-sixth (1/6) of the strength of gravity on Earth. So, if an object weighs 100 pounds on Earth, it would weigh approximately 16.6 pounds on the moon.
Therefore, an astronaut's weight is determined by the gravitational force acting upon them. With the weaker gravitational field on the moon, the force pulling the astronaut downward is significantly less compared to Earth. As a result, their weight is also proportionally reduced. However, it is important to note that the mass of the astronaut remains the same regardless of the location, as mass is a measure of the amount of matter an object contains.
So, an astronaut's reduced weight on the moon is primarily due to the weaker gravitational field strength compared to Earth.