<p align="right">Last Update: <font color="#4f81bd">November 30, 2024</font></p> ## BIG IDEAS - Gravitational acceleration is how fast an object speeds up as it falls. - Gravitational acceleration on a planet depends on the planet's mass ($M$) and radius ($R$). - Symbol $g$ - For ease of calculations, $g$ on Earth is considered a constant value of $9.8 \ \text{m/s}$ >[!summary] >In the absence of air resistance, all objects fall at the same rate regardless of their mass. This means that the acceleration due to gravity (denoted as $g$) is constant near the Earth's surface. ### Formula $g \ = \ \frac{GM}{R^2} \tag{1}$ where $G$ is the gravitational constant, $M$ is the mass of the planet, and $R$ is the radius. ### Related Topics --- [[Home|Home]] | [[Notes Vault/Physics Notes Vault/Kinematics/Uniform Acceleration Motion/Constant Acceleration|Constant Acceleration]] | [[Kinematic Equations]] | [[Notes Vault/Physics Notes Vault/Kinematics/Uniform Acceleration Motion/Free Fall|Free Fall]] | [[Gravitational Acceleration]] | [[Terminal Velocity]] | [[Air resistance|Air Resistance]]