Gravity & escape velocity
Calculate surface gravity, your weight and escape velocity on any world from its mass and radius. Earth: 9.8 m/s² and 11.2 km/s; Mars: 3.7 m/s². With formulas.
Your experiment
How it works
A planet’s mass increases its pull, while a larger radius puts its surface farther from the center. Your mass stays the same on another world; your weight, a force measured in newtons, changes.
How to Calculate Gravity on Another Planet ↗About this model
A spherical, non-rotating body without atmospheric drag. Radius means distance from the center to the reference surface. Gas giants do not have a solid surface to stand on.
Key formulas
| Quantity | Formula | Note or example |
|---|---|---|
| Surface gravity | g = GM / R² | M = mass, R = radius |
| Scaling from Earth | g ≈ 9.82 m/s² × (M / M⊕) ÷ (R / R⊕)² | Masses and radii in Earth units |
| Weight | W = m × g | Newtons; your mass m stays the same |
| Escape velocity | vₑ = √(2GM / R) | Earth ≈ 11.2 km/s |
Worked examples
Each row uses one of this lab’s presets and the same model as the interactive tool.
| Example | Surface gravity | Your weight | Escape speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earth | 9.82 m/s² | 687.42 N | 11.19 km/s |
| Moon | 1.62 m/s² | 113.7 N | 2.38 km/s |
| Mars | 3.73 m/s² | 261.1 N | 5.03 km/s |
Gravity & escape velocity: common questions
What is the difference between mass and weight?
Mass measures the amount of matter in kilograms. Weight is gravitational force, measured in newtons.
Does escape speed depend on spacecraft mass?
In this ideal model, no. It depends on the attracting world’s mass and the starting distance from its center.
How do you calculate gravity on another planet?
Divide the planet’s mass (in Earth masses) by the square of its radius (in Earth radii), then multiply by Earth’s gravity, about 9.8 m/s². For Mars: 0.107 ÷ 0.532² × 9.8 ≈ 3.7 m/s².
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