Gravitation MCQs 2026

According to Newton's law of gravitation, if the distance between two masses is doubled, the gravitational force between them becomes

1. A doubled ✓
2. B halved ✓
3. C four times ✓
4. D one-fourth ✓

Kepler's first law states that planets move around the Sun in

1. A perfect circles ✓
2. B parabolic paths ✓
3. C straight lines ✓
4. D elliptical orbits with the Sun at one focus ✓

Kepler's second law (the law of areas) states that

1. A a line joining a planet to the Sun sweeps equal areas in equal time intervals ✓
2. B all planets share the same orbital period ✓
3. C orbital speed is constant throughout the orbit ✓
4. D planets move faster when farther from the Sun ✓

Kepler's third law states that the square of a planet's orbital period is proportional to

1. A its mass ✓
2. B its diameter ✓
3. C the cube of the semi-major axis of its orbit ✓
4. D its orbital velocity ✓

A geostationary satellite has an orbital period of

1. A 12 hours ✓
2. B 90 minutes ✓
3. C 1 year ✓
4. D 24 hours ✓

A geostationary satellite appears stationary relative to Earth because it

1. A orbits in the equatorial plane with the same period and direction as Earth's rotation ✓
2. B has zero velocity ✓
3. C is not affected by gravity ✓
4. D is physically tethered to the ground ✓

The approximate altitude of a geostationary satellite above Earth's surface is

1. A 400 km ✓
2. B about 36,000 km ✓
3. C 1,000 km ✓
4. D 100,000 km ✓

Astronauts in an orbiting spacecraft experience weightlessness because

1. A there is no gravity in space ✓
2. B the spacecraft blocks gravity ✓
3. C they and the spacecraft are in continuous free fall around Earth ✓
4. D gravity acts only on the spacecraft, not the astronauts ✓

The gravitational potential energy of a mass m at distance r from mass M is given by

1. A U = GMm/r ✓
2. B U = -GMm/r ✓
3. C U = GMm r ✓
4. D U = -GM/m ✓

The weight of a body is defined as

1. A the amount of matter it contains ✓
2. B its resistance to acceleration ✓
3. C its volume multiplied by density ✓
4. D the gravitational force exerted on it by a planet ✓

The mass of a body, unlike its weight,

1. A varies with location ✓
2. B becomes zero in space ✓
3. C remains the same everywhere in the universe ✓
4. D depends on the local value of g ✓

Galileo's famous result regarding falling bodies states that, in the absence of air resistance,

1. A all bodies fall with the same acceleration regardless of mass ✓
2. B heavier bodies fall faster ✓
3. C lighter bodies fall faster ✓
4. D acceleration depends on the shape of the object ✓

Tides on Earth are primarily caused by the gravitational pull of

1. A the Sun alone ✓
2. B the Moon, with a smaller contribution from the Sun ✓
3. C Jupiter ✓
4. D Earth's own rotation only ✓

Spring tides, which are unusually high tides, occur when

1. A the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned ✓
2. B the Moon is at its farthest point from Earth ✓
3. C the Moon is exactly overhead at the poles ✓
4. D Earth is farthest from the Sun ✓

The point at which the entire weight of a body is considered to act is called its

1. A center of mass only ✓
2. B center of gravity ✓
3. C point of inertia ✓
4. D focal point ✓

If the mass of one of two bodies is doubled while distance remains constant, the gravitational force between them

1. A remains the same ✓
2. B becomes half ✓
3. C doubles ✓
4. D becomes four times ✓

Gravitational field intensity at a point is defined as

1. A the gravitational force experienced per unit mass placed at that point ✓
2. B the total gravitational force in a region ✓
3. C the potential energy per unit volume ✓
4. D the mass enclosed within a sphere ✓

The gravitational field intensity at Earth's surface is numerically equal to

1. A G ✓
2. B the escape velocity ✓
3. C zero ✓
4. D the acceleration due to gravity, g ✓

Newton's law of gravitation is often called an "inverse square law" because the force

1. A increases with the square of distance ✓
2. B is independent of mass ✓
3. C varies inversely with the square of the distance between the masses ✓
4. D is proportional to the square of distance ✓

A satellite that orbits Earth from pole to pole, used for mapping and weather observation, is called a

1. A geostationary satellite ✓
2. B polar satellite ✓
3. C communication satellite ✓
4. D lunar satellite ✓

The minimum velocity required for a projectile to permanently escape a planet's gravitational field, without further propulsion, is called

1. A escape velocity ✓
2. B orbital velocity ✓
3. C terminal velocity ✓
4. D angular velocity ✓

The value of g is slightly greater at the poles than at the equator mainly because

1. A poles are closer to the Sun ✓
2. B the equator has more water bodies ✓
3. C Earth is oblate and rotates, reducing effective g at the equator ✓
4. D the magnetic field is stronger at the poles ✓

The term "microgravity" is used to describe conditions

1. A experienced by objects in free fall or orbit, where apparent weight is nearly zero ✓
2. B found only on the Moon ✓
3. C found only in deep space far from any planet ✓
4. D where gravity is exactly zero ✓

If Earth's mass suddenly doubled while its radius stayed the same, the value of g at its surface would

1. A stay the same ✓
2. B become half ✓
3. C double ✓
4. D become four times ✓

Among the four fundamental forces of nature, the gravitational force is

1. A the strongest ✓
2. B the weakest ✓
3. C equal in strength to the electromagnetic force ✓
4. D equal in strength to the strong nuclear force ✓

As a satellite's orbital radius increases, its orbital period

1. A decreases ✓
2. B remains the same ✓
3. C becomes zero ✓
4. D increases ✓

The value of the universal gravitational constant G was first measured experimentally using

1. A a torsion balance in the Cavendish experiment ✓
2. B a simple pendulum ✓
3. C a spring balance ✓
4. D a barometer ✓

A "geosynchronous" orbit differs from a strictly "geostationary" orbit in that a geosynchronous satellite

1. A always stays over the equator ✓
2. B has a period longer than 24 hours ✓
3. C may be inclined and not stay fixed over one point, though it shares the same 24-hour period ✓
4. D has no fixed period ✓

The shape of planetary orbits around the Sun, according to Kepler, is

1. A circular ✓
2. B parabolic ✓
3. C hyperbolic ✓
4. D elliptical ✓

The first person to propose that the force holding the Moon in orbit and the force causing objects to fall on Earth are the same is

1. A Isaac Newton ✓
2. B Johannes Kepler ✓
3. C Galileo Galilei ✓
4. D Nicolaus Copernicus ✓

Einstein's general theory of relativity describes gravity as

1. A a simple attractive force between masses only ✓
2. B the curvature of spacetime caused by mass and energy ✓
3. C a repulsive force at large distances ✓
4. D unrelated to mass ✓

A black hole is an object whose escape velocity

1. A equals zero ✓
2. B equals the speed of sound ✓
3. C exceeds the speed of light ✓
4. D equals Earth's escape velocity ✓

The gravitational force between two 1 kg masses placed 1 meter apart is approximately, in newtons,

1. A 9.8 ✓
2. B 6.674x10^-11 ✓
3. C 1 ✓
4. D 3x10^8 ✓

According to Newton's third law, the gravitational force with which Earth attracts an object equals

1. A zero, since gravity is a one-way force ✓
2. B half the force the object exerts on Earth ✓
3. C twice the force the object exerts on Earth ✓
4. D the force with which the object attracts Earth ✓

The term used for the apparent decrease in the effective weight of a body in free fall or orbit is

1. A buoyancy ✓
2. B inertia ✓
3. C apparent weightlessness ✓
4. D centripetal loss ✓

A body's mass on the Moon compared to on Earth is

1. A exactly the same, since mass does not depend on location ✓
2. B one-sixth ✓
3. C six times ✓
4. D zero ✓

The weight of an astronaut on the Moon compared to Earth would be

1. A exactly the same ✓
2. B about one-sixth of their Earth weight ✓
3. C about six times their Earth weight ✓
4. D zero, but with the same mass on both ✓

If a planet has a larger mass but the same radius as Earth, its escape velocity compared to Earth's would be

1. A smaller ✓
2. B the same ✓
3. C zero ✓
4. D larger ✓

The formula for orbital velocity of a satellite near Earth's surface is

1. A v = sqrt(2gR) ✓
2. B v = sqrt(gR) ✓
3. C v = g/R ✓
4. D v = 2gR ✓

The orbital velocity of a satellite close to Earth's surface is approximately

1. A 11.2 km/s ✓
2. B 3.0 km/s ✓
3. C 7.9 km/s ✓
4. D 1.6 km/s ✓

The formula for escape velocity from a planet's surface is

1. A v = sqrt(2gR) ✓
2. B v = sqrt(gR) ✓
3. C v = gR^2 ✓
4. D v = g/R ✓

Newton's law of universal gravitation states that the force between two masses is

1. A directly proportional to the distance between them ✓
2. B inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them ✓
3. C inversely proportional to the distance between them ✓
4. D independent of the distance between them ✓

The SI unit of the universal gravitational constant G is

1. A N m^2/kg^2 ✓
2. B N/m ✓
3. C N kg/m ✓
4. D N m/kg ✓

The value of G was first determined experimentally by

1. A Newton ✓
2. B Galileo ✓
3. C Kepler ✓
4. D Cavendish ✓

The approximate value of the universal gravitational constant G is

1. A 9.8 N m^2/kg^2 ✓
2. B 3.0x10^8 m/s ✓
3. C 6.674x10^-11 N m^2/kg^2 ✓
4. D 1.6x10^-19 C ✓

The average value of acceleration due to gravity on Earth's surface is approximately

1. A 6.674 m/s^2 ✓
2. B 9.8 m/s^2 ✓
3. C 11.2 m/s^2 ✓
4. D 3.7 m/s^2 ✓

The acceleration due to gravity on the Moon is approximately

1. A equal to Earth's ✓
2. B twice Earth's ✓
3. C 9.8 m/s^2 ✓
4. D about one-sixth of Earth's ✓

As altitude above Earth's surface increases, the value of g

1. A increases ✓
2. B decreases ✓
3. C remains constant ✓
4. D becomes negative ✓

As depth below Earth's surface increases toward the center, the value of g

1. A decreases, becoming zero at the center ✓
2. B increases indefinitely ✓
3. C remains constant ✓
4. D becomes negative ✓

The escape velocity from Earth's surface is approximately

1. A 7.9 km/s ✓
2. B 3.0x10^5 km/s ✓
3. C 1.2 km/s ✓
4. D 11.2 km/s ✓