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Physics SL

SLHL

Chapter 17: Gravitation

Develop full gravitation fluency from Newton's inverse-square force law and field mapping to Kepler-style orbit reasoning, potential-energy methods, escape-speed analysis, and orbital decay under drag.

Estimated chapter time: 82 minutes

IB syllabus: D.1 · SL and HL

Chapter Topics

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  1. 1How to Read This Gravitation Chapter
    1. 1.1Why Gravitation Is More Than a Falling-Object Topic
    2. 1.2Learning Targets
    3. 1.3How to Work This Chapter Efficiently
  2. 217.1 Newton's Law of Gravitation and Gravitational Field Strength
    1. 2.1Inverse-Square Force Law and Scaling Consequences
    2. 2.2Field Strength as Force Per Unit Mass
    3. 2.3Radial Fields, Uniform Approximations, and Superposition
  3. 317.2 Kepler's Laws and Orbital Motion from Newtonian Mechanics
    1. 3.1Kepler's Three Laws as Orbit-Structure Rules
  4. 4Chapter 17 Wrap-Up
    1. 4.1Fast Exam Workflow for Gravitation Problems

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