Suppose we could magically triple the distance between Earth and the moon. This would cause the gravitational force by Earth on the moon to be
A) reduced to 1/9 of its former value.
B) reduced to 1/4 of its former value.
C) increased to three times its former value.
D) be unchanged.
E) reduced to 1/3 of its former value.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The gravitational force between two objects is inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. Tripling the distance would reduce the force to 1/3^2 = 1/9 of its original value.

Suppose We Could Magically Triple the Distance Between Earth and the Moon