1. Mass:
* Direct Proportionality: The force of gravity is directly proportional to the product of the masses of the two objects. This means that if you double the mass of one object, the gravitational force between them doubles. Similarly, if you double the mass of both objects, the gravitational force increases by a factor of four.
2. Distance:
* Inverse Square Law: The force of gravity is inversely proportional to the square of the distance between the centers of the two objects. This means that if you double the distance between the objects, the gravitational force between them decreases by a factor of four. If you triple the distance, the force decreases by a factor of nine, and so on.
In summary:
* Greater mass: Stronger gravitational force
* Closer objects: Stronger gravitational force
This relationship is captured by Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation:
F = G * (m1 * m2) / r²
Where:
* F is the gravitational force
* G is the gravitational constant (approximately 6.674 x 10^-11 N m²/kg²)
* m1 and m2 are the masses of the two objects
* r is the distance between their centers
This formula shows that the force of gravity is directly proportional to the product of the masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance.
