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The acceleration due to gravity on the surface of the Earth is maximum

June 1, 2025 by rawan239

The acceleration due to gravity on the surface of the Earth is maximum and it

increases as we go up

decreases as we go up or down

increases as we go down

neither increases nor decreases as we go up or down

This question was previously asked in

UPSC CAPF – 2011

Download PDF Attempt Online

The acceleration due to gravity on the surface of the Earth is maximum, and it decreases as we go up or down.

The acceleration due to gravity (g) at a distance r from the center of the Earth (mass M) is given by g = GM/r². On the surface, r is the Earth’s radius (R), so g_surface = GM/R². As we go up, r increases (r = R + altitude), so g decreases according to the inverse square law. As we go down into the Earth, the mass (M) pulling us decreases (only the mass within the sphere of radius r contributes to the gravitational force at radius r, assuming uniform density for simplicity, though density varies in reality), while the distance from the center (r) decreases. The effect of decreasing mass outweighs the effect of decreasing distance, causing gravity to decrease linearly towards the center (g = GM_r/r², where M_r is the mass within radius r). Gravity is zero at the Earth’s center.

Therefore, gravity is maximum at the surface and decreases both above and below the surface. Minor variations exist due to altitude, latitude (Earth’s bulge), and local geological variations, but the general trend is decrease away from the surface.

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