Which change in the sun’s gravity would occur if the sun’s mass were reduced by one-half?(1 point)
Responses
It would be halved.
It would be halved.
It would be doubled.
It would be doubled.
It would be unchanged.
It would be unchanged.
It would be zero.
If the Sun's mass were reduced by one-half, its gravity would also be halved. The gravitational force that a body like the Sun exerts is directly proportional to its mass. This relationship is described by Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation, which states that the gravitational force (F) between two masses (m1 and m2) is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance (r) between their centers:
F = G * (m1 * m2) / r^2
where G is the gravitational constant.
So, if the Sun's mass were reduced by half (m1/2), the force would be:
F_new = G * ((m1/2) * m2) / r^2 = 1/2 * F_original
As a result, the gravitational attraction of the Sun would be halved.