Abstract
Newton’s law of gravitation states that the force (in newton) between two point masses m1, m2 is equal to Gm1 m2/r2 where ris the distance between the masses and G = 6.670 × 10−11 [≈(20/3) × 10−11] m3 /kg s2. A unit mass placed in the vicinity of any body will be in a field of force (gravitational field) and experience an acceleration. The force may be calculated by applying Newton’s law to infinitesimal volume elements of the body and integrating over the entire volume. The earth has also a gravitational field but in calculating it account must be taken of the centrifugal force due to the rotation of the earth.
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© 1979 D. S. Parasnis
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Parasnis, D.S. (1979). Gravitational methods. In: Principles of Applied Geophysics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5814-2_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5814-2_3
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-0-412-15810-0
Online ISBN: 978-94-009-5814-2
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