Interactive simulations for science teaching
400 downloadable interactive simulations
Universal gravitation
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- Summary
Animated version of the famous Newton's drawing dealing with gravitation and the free fall of a body. Free fall and the launching of an object into orbit are both governed by the same theory of gravitation.
The plus and minus buttons enable you to observe different cases, from free fall (initial velocity zero) to escape velocity (11.3 km/s starting from the ground.)
Frictional effects are ignored; only the force of gravity is acting.
- Learning objectives
- To understand how to place an object in orbit.
- To show that circular motion is a special case of an elliptical orbit.
- How to use the animation
Click on
or 
to set the initial velocity of the cannon ball.
- Keywords
- cannon, Newton, gravitation, gravity, satellite, The-placing-of-a-satellite-in-orbit, projectile, trajectory, free-fall, speed, velocity, escape, rocket
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