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Physics

Gravity

Gravity is the attractive force between masses; on Earth it makes objects fall and gives them weight.

Synonyms: Gravitation, Gravitational force


Gravity (or gravitation) is the mutual attraction between objects that have mass. It is one of the four fundamental forces of physics and acts across any distance.

Newton’s law of gravitation

Isaac Newton described gravity as a force that attracts two masses in proportion to the product of their masses and inversely to the square of their distance. At the Earth’s surface it accelerates objects at about 9.81 m/s².

Einstein’s view

In Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity, gravity is not a classical force but the curvature of space and time caused by mass and energy. Both descriptions are extremely accurate within their domains.

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