What is the approximate acceleration due to gravity near Earth's surface?

What is the approximate acceleration due to gravity near Earth's surface?

• A. 0.98 m/s^2
• B. 12.0 m/s^2
• C. 9.81 m/s^2
• D. 3.00 m/s^2

Answer: (C)

Gravity at Earth’s surface is about 9.8 meters per second squared. This means a dropped object speeds up by roughly 9.8 m/s each second, neglecting air resistance. The standard approximate value is 9.81 m/s^2 (often rounded to 9.8), which is why that option is the best choice. The other numbers are not close to the actual value for Earth’s surface: 0.98 is about ten times too small, 12.0 is somewhat larger than the typical surface value, and 3.00 is far too small.

Gravity at Earth’s surface is about 9.8 meters per second squared. This means a dropped object speeds up by roughly 9.8 m/s each second, neglecting air resistance. The standard approximate value is 9.81 m/s^2 (often rounded to 9.8), which is why that option is the best choice. The other numbers are not close to the actual value for Earth’s surface: 0.98 is about ten times too small, 12.0 is somewhat larger than the typical surface value, and 3.00 is far too small.