Weight and gravity

[Graham Foster]

Greetings

 

Our discussion at EGGS continues about the differences between 'weight'
and 'gravity'.

 

We used to distinguish between the two by indicating that gravity force
is the attractive force of the Earth on an object and is evident during
free-fall motion when no reaction force acts.

 

Weight is the force of the object on another surface that it is contact
with. 

 

This implies that when we are in free fall e.g in Earth's orbit, there
is gravity force on the object but it is weightless since there is no
reaction force

on the object. 

 

Do other Physics teachers distinguish between 'weight force' and
'gravity force'?? If not why? if so why?

 

Thanks

 

Graham Foster

 

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