If object A has mass Ma and object B has mass Mb,
then the force F on object A is directed toward object B
and has magnitude of F = G Ma Mb / r2
That would be the correct gravitational force, and the direction IS directed toward object B. True
That is correct! The equation you mentioned represents the gravitational force between two objects, A and B. The force, denoted as F, is proportional to the masses of the objects, Ma and Mb, and inversely proportional to the square of their distance apart, represented by r. The constant G is the gravitational constant that accounts for the strength of the gravitational force.
To calculate the magnitude of the gravitational force, you can use the equation F = G * Ma * Mb / r^2. Let me break it down further:
1. Determine the values of G, Ma, Mb, and r. The gravitational constant, G, is a known constant with a value of approximately 6.674 x 10^-11 N m^2 / kg^2. The masses of objects A (Ma) and B (Mb) are typically given in kilograms, and the distance between them (r) is measured in meters.
2. Substitute the values into the equation. Multiply the masses Ma and Mb together, then divide by the square of the distance, r^2. Finally, multiply the result by the gravitational constant G.
3. Calculate the final result. The resulting value will give you the magnitude of the gravitational force acting between objects A and B. The unit for the force will be in newtons (N).
Remember that the direction of the gravitational force is always toward object B. This means that object A will experience an attractive force directed towards object B.
If you have the values of the masses and the distance between the objects, you can plug these values into the equation to calculate the gravitational force acting between object A and object B.