Weight

Quick Facts: Who was Weight?

Subject:

Weight

Known for:

The measure of gravitational force exerted on a mass by an environment.

Verified Source:

2Day Chrono-Wiki & Primary Historical Archives

Origins & Early Life

In science and engineering, the weight of an object is a quantity associated with the gravitational force exerted on the object by other objects in its environment, although there is some variation and debate as to the exact definition. Some standard textbooks define weight as a vector quantity, the gravitational force acting on the object. Others define weight as a scalar quantity, the magnitude of the gravitational force.

Career & Major Achievements

Yet others define it as the magnitude of the reaction force exerted on a body by mechanisms that counteract the effects of gravity: the weight is the quantity that is measured by, for example, a spring scale. Thus, in a state of free fall, the weight would be zero. In this sense of weight, terrestrial objects can be weightless: so if one ignores air resistance, one could say the legendary apple falling from the tree, on its way to meet the ground near Isaac Newton, was weightless.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The unit of measurement for weight is that of force, which in the International System of Units (SI) is the newton. For example, an object with a mass of one kilogram has a weight of about 9.8 newtons on the surface of the Earth, and about one-sixth as much on the Moon.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Weight

True or False: “The weight of an object in a state of free fall, ignoring air resistance, is considered to be zero.”

Answer (TRUE ⭕): In physics, weight is defined as the force of gravity (W=mg). In free fall, the net external gravitational force acting on the object is balanced or the object is accelerating such that the measured weight force is zero.

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Frequently Asked Questions about Weight