Science UNIT 10 Semester Review LESSON 2 Semester A Test

The mass of an object decreases by one-half. What happens to the gravitational force between the object and a second object whose mass stays the same?(1 point)

The gravitational force decreases by one-half.***

The gravitational force stays the same, as long as the objects remain on Earth.
The gravitational force doubles.

The gravitational force decreases to one-fourth.

The gravitational force decreases by one-half.

The correct answer is: The gravitational force decreases by one-half.

To answer this question, we need to understand the relationship between mass and gravitational force. The gravitational force between two objects is directly proportional to the product of their masses.

Mathematically, we can represent this relationship as follows:
Gravitational force โˆ mass1 x mass2

In this question, it is given that the mass of one object decreases by one-half. Let's assume the mass of the first object as M1 and the mass of the second object as M2.

So, after the reduction, the new mass of the first object (M1') can be calculated as:
M1' = M1/2

Now, let's analyze the gravitational force between these two objects:
Gravitational force (F)' โˆ M1' x M2
โˆ (M1/2) x M2
โˆ (1/2) x M1 x M2
โˆ (1/2) x Gravitational force (F) [since F โˆ M1 x M2]

From the above relationship, we can see that the gravitational force decreases by one-half (or is halved) when the mass of one object is reduced by one-half.

Therefore, the correct answer is:
The gravitational force decreases by one-half.