Mass and weight FOCUS POINTS. or force meter. % Define mass and weight and know that weights and therefore masses] may be compared een eee en? The force of gravity is l " BUC UE cen rates of change that define speed and a property, the mass of an object. Ma Peace ie Gt eee Deed eau Sr Mass The mass of an object is the measure of the amount of matter in it. It can be stated that mass is a measure of the quantity of matter in an object at rest relative to an observer. The standard unit of mass is the kilogram (kg) and until 2019 was the mass of a piece of platinum- iridium alloy at the Office of Weights and Measures in Paris. It is now based on a fundamental physical constant which can be measured with great precision. The gram (g) is one-thousandth of a kilogram. 1 ae see Ig= Tooo X& 10% kg = 0.001 kg The term weight is often used when mass is really meant. In science the two ideas are distinct and have different units. The confusion is not helped by the fact that mass is found on a balance by a process we unfortunately call ‘weighing’! Key definitions Mass 2 measure of the quantity of matter in an object at rest relative to an observer Weight a gravitational force on an object that has mass There are several kinds of balance used to measure mass. In the beam balance the unknown mass in ss on the Moon than it is on the Earth and this a Wu have encountered measurements of space and time, and the SONG eee a Cclt es the quantity of matter in a body. In the presence of eight in proportion to its mass and the strength of the gravitational force, eee orien ee Cee one pan is balanced against known masses in the other pan. In the lever balance a system of levers acts against the mass when it is placed in the pan. A direct reading is obtained from the position on a scale of a pointer joined to the lever system. AA digital top-pan balance is shown in Figure 1.3.1. A Figure 1.3.1 A digital top-pan balance Weight We all constantly experience the force of gravity, in other words, the pull of the Earth. It causes an unsupported body to fall from rest to the ground. Weight is a gravitational force on an object that has mass.1.3 MASS AND WEIGHT For an object above or on the Earth's ue nearer it fs to the centre of the Earth, the move Earth attracts it. Since the Earth is not a perfect sphere but is flatter at the poles, the weight of Fi body varies over the Earth's surface. It is greater the poles than at the equator. Gravity 3 force that can act through space, that is there does not need to be contact between the Earth and the object on which it acts as there does when we push or pull something. Other action-at- a-distance forces which, like gravity, decrease with distance are fi] magnetic forces between magnets and {il electric forces between electric charges. When 2 mass experiences a gravitational force we say itis in a gravitational field. Weight is the result of a gravitational field acting on a mass: weight is a vector quantity and is measured in newtons (N).. The newton The unit of force is the newton. It will be defined later (Topic 1.5); the definition is based on the change of speed a force can produce in a body. Weight is a force and therefore should be measured in newtons, The weight of an object can be measured by hanging it on a spring balance marked in newtons (Figure 1.3.2) and letting the pull of gravity stretch the spring in the balance. The greater the pull, the more the spring stretches. 1 newton Spring balince A Figure 1.3.2 The wei ‘about I newton, On most of the Earth’s surface: iaht ofan average-sized apple ig The weight of an object of mass Ika is 9.8N, Often this is taken a5 10N, A mass of 2k has weight of20N, and soon. The mass ofan objet — nd, untike weight, does not the Earth. ver it is ame wherever gence oF the same he pre depend 0 joon is said to be one- would a mass of Weight and gravity : The weight W of an object is the force of gravity acting on it which gives it an acceleration g when it is falling freely near the Earth's surface. If the object has mass m, then IW can be calculated from ‘ma (Newton's second law, see p. 39). We put Wand a=g to give We mg Taking g=9.8m/s? and m= 1kg, this gives W’= 9.81) that is an object of mass 1kg has weight 9.8N, or fear enough 10N, Similarly, an object of 2k has weight of about 20N, and so om ae Gravitational field he force of ae) acts through space and can ‘M contact with the Earth, the cae, Tt is an invisible, action-at- by aa thee fe try to explain its existence a els cath is surrounded bya Ks xerts a force on any ed, magnetic and electric he gr tational fi z 4 Rg acting per une natrenath is defined as Tangin Mees 9 the equation jyr— me gives g =".Measurement shows that on the Earth’s surface a mass of 1kg experiences a force of 9.8N, ive. its weight is 9.8N. The strength of the Earth’s field is therefore 9.8N/kg (near enough 10N/kg). It is denoted by g, the letter also used to denote the acceleration of free fall. Hence g=98Nike= We now have two ways of regarding g. When considering objects falling freely, we can think of ‘it as an acceleration of 9.8m/s®. When an object. of known mass is at rest and we wish to know the force of gravity (in N) acting on it, we think of g as the Earth's gravitational field strength of 9.8N/kg. The gravitational field strength is equivalent to the acceleration of free fall. .8m/s? Gravitational field While the mass of an object is always the same, its weight varies depending on the value of g. On the Moon gravitational field strength is only about 1.6N/kg, and so a mass of 1kg has a weight of just 1.6N there. The weight of an object is directly proportional to its mass, which explains why g is the same for all objects. The greater the mass of an object, the greater is the force of gravity on it but it does not accelerate faster when falling because of its greater inertia (i.e. its greater resistance to acceleration). AMM cats Test yourself 3. Anastronaut has a mass of 80kg. @ Calculate the weight of the astronaut on the Moon where the gravitational field strength is. 1.6N/kg. On the journey back to Earth, the astronaut reaches a point X where the gravitational field strengths due to the Earth and the Moon are equal in magnitude but opposite in direction State i the resultant value of the gravitational field strength at X ii the weight of the astronaut at X. ¥ describe and use the concept of weight as the effect of a gravitational field on a mas:1.3 MASS AND WEIGHT oe Exam-style question 1 a i Explain what is meant by the mass object. ii Explain what is meant by an object. ii Describe how weights may be the Rover [2 [Total: 6] avitational g ee 2 ¢ Which of the following properties is th rt itional field for an object on the Earth a on the M Yoon > p: A weight J B mass C acceleration of free fall D gravitational field sth @ State the SI units of i weight ii acceleration of free fall iii gravitational field strength.