Differentiate between mass and weight.
Difficulty: Medium
Mass and weight:
Mass |
Weight |
1.The quantity of matter contained in a body is called its mass. |
1.Weight is a force with which earth attracts a body towards its centre. |
2.The mass of a body remains constant everywhere, whether it is measured at a point far away from the centre of the earth, or the surface at the centre of the earth. |
2.The weight of a body is not a constant in quantity but its value is different at different places. |
3.Mass is a scalar quantity. |
3.Weight is a vector quantity and is always directed towards the centre of the earth. |
4.The SI unit of mass is kilogram. |
4.The SI unit of weight is newton. |
5.Mass is measured by ordinary balance. |
5.weight is measured by spring balance. |
6.Mass of the body cannot be zero. |
6. The weight of the body can be zero i,e at the centre of the earth and in space where g=0 so w=mg=m×0=0 |
7. It is the measure of inertia in a body i.e: m= |
7. Weight is given by w=mg |