Mass vs. Weight
![](3D"MassandWeight_files/image001.jpg")
<=
/a>
The force of gravity is a source of much confusion to many students of phys=
ics.
The mass of an object refers to the amount of matter that is contained by t=
he
object; the weight of an object is the force of gravity acting upon that
object. Mass is related to "how much stuff is there" and weight is
related to the pull of the Earth (or any other planet) upon that stuff.
The mass of an object
(measured in kg) will be the same no matter where in the universe that object is located. Mass is never altered by locat=
ion,
the pull of gravity, speed or even the existence of other forces. For examp=
le,
a 2-kg object will have a mass of 2 kg whether it is located on Earth, on t=
he
moon, or on Jupiter; its mass will be 2 kg whether it is moving or not (at
least for purposes of this study); and its mass will be 2 kg whether it is
being pushed or not. Mass is =
“how much stuff” is in the object.
On the other hand, the weight of an object<=
span
style=3D'font-family:Verdana'> (measured in Newtons)
will vary according to where in the universe the object is. Weight depends =
upon
which planet is exerting the force and the distance the object is from the
planet. Weight, being equivalent to the force of gravity, is dependent upon the value of g (accelerat=
ion of
gravity). On Earth's surface, g is 9.8 m/s2 (often
approximated to 10 m/s2). On the moon's surface, g is 1.7 m/s=
2. Go to another planet, and there will be another g value. In
addition, the g value is inversely proportional to the distance from the ce=
nter
of the planet. So if g were measured at a distance of 400 km above the eart=
h's
surface, you would find the value of g to be less than 9.8 m/s2. Always be cautious of the distinction between mass and weight. I=
t is
the source of much confusion for many students of physics.
------=_NextPart_01C6C934.53439C20
Content-Location: file:///C:/F4862974/MassandWeight_files/image001.jpg
Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64
Content-Type: image/jpeg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==
------=_NextPart_01C6C934.53439C20
Content-Location: file:///C:/F4862974/MassandWeight_files/filelist.xml
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Content-Type: text/xml; charset="utf-8"