Gravity

Gravity

Open Ended

In your own words: What is gravity?

Eylene Pirez

Born and raised in Cuba, Eylene grew up under harsh political and economic restrictions that drove to migrate to the United States in 2001. She obtained her B.S. in Astrophysics and graduate degree in Accelerator Physics at UCLA. Eylene has also worked operating the cameras on-board NASA’s Cassini Spacecraft among many ground-breaking scientific experiments.

 

Multiple Choice

What keeps planets and moons moving in circular orbits?

• Tracks like railroads

• Centripetal force

• The balance between forward motion and gravity

• Just gravity

Multiple Choice

Everything that has mass has gravity. Which of these would have more gravity?

• Sun

• Earth

• Moon

• Asteroid

Staying in orbit

• The balance between gravity and forward motion (velocity) keeps planets and moons in their orbits

• If the moon slowed down it would circle closer and closer to the Earth until it collided because the two forces would be out of balance

• If the moon sped up it would be able to escape earth's gravity and move away from the planet.

Multiple Choice

No matter what speed it moves the moon will always stay in orbit around earth.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

If the moon sped up it would

• hit the Earth

• move away from the Earth

• stay in the same orbit around earth.

On the next slide pay attention to how fast the different planets are moving

Do planets move faster or slower closer to the sun?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Di7dFxXe8qI

Orbital speed = how fast planets move

Multiple Choice

Planets closer to the sun are moving

• Faster

• Slower

Multiple Choice

Planets must move faster when they are closer to the sun because

• Gravity is stronger and so they have to move faster to keep a balance

• Gravity is the same but they would get too hot otherwise

• It is just a coincidence

This graph shows how the strength of gravity changes as you move further away

Multiple Choice

The closer you get to the sun or any object the ____ gravity is

• Stronger

• Weaker

Multiple Choice

Gravity attracts all objects towards one another.

• False
• True
• It depends

Multiple Choice

Why a ball falls to the ground?

• Earth's force of gravity is GREATER than the ball's, so the ball gets attracted to the ground. 
• Earth's force of gravity is LESS than the ball's, so the ball gets attracted to the ground. 

Mass

As the mass between two interacting objects increases, the gravity will also increase.

Multiple Choice

Where would you have more mass, on Earth or on the Moon?

• Earth
• Moon
• IS THE SAME, mass DOESN'T CHANGE
• In both Planets.

Multiple Choice

Where would you weigh more, on Earth or on the Moon?

• Earth

• Moon

Multiple Choice

Is there Gravity in space?

• Yes

• No

Multiple Choice

Which planet has the strongest gravity?

• Earth

• Jupiter

• Mercury