Law of Universal Gravitation

The law of universal gravitation relates the attractive gravitational force F_G F G to the separation of two bodies’ center of mass ‘r’ and their masses 'M' Capital M and ‘m’. It is given by:

F_G = -GMm/r2 F G equals - Gravitational constant * Capital M * m / r squared

Where ‘G’ is the universal gravitational constant. This result was derived by Sir Isaac Newton in his 1686 publication Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. This law implies that all objects with mass in the universe are attracted to one another.

Figure 1: Schematic of gravitational forces acting between objects with masses m and M capital M separated by a distance r (distance between the center of masses).

Here you can read how Newton derived his law by simple observation of the night's sky.

• Derivation of the Law of Universal Grativation