Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation
The force of gravity between two objects is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers. Mathematically:
F = G * (m1 * m2) / r^2
Where:
* F is the force of gravity
* G is the gravitational constant
* m1 and m2 are the masses of the two objects
* r is the distance between their centers
The Relationship Between Force and Distance
* Inverse Square Law: Notice the "r^2" in the denominator. This means if you halve the distance (r/2), the force (F) will be multiplied by 4 (because (1/2)^2 = 1/4).
In your case:
If the distance between two stars decreases by half, the force of gravity between them will increase by a factor of four, not just double.
