mass vs weight

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Conceptually I understand that mass is a measure of the amount of stuff present in an object, while weight is a measure of the force of gravity applied to that object. An object of a given mass will have a bigger weight on Earth than on the moon because Earth’s gravity is stronger. But… mass is determined by weighing an object on a scale. And there is a simple mathematical conversion between grams (mass) and pounds (weight), implying that they’re just different units for the same concept. So what gives? (Also this is a question that applies to so many fields, I had no idea which flair to apply.)

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Anonymous 0 Comments

So your mass is your mass. How much stuff is in something.

Weight is more like mass * gravity. It changes depending on what planet/moon/whatever you are standing on.

Mass scales typically have a counter balance, so they would still work, still measure whatever object accurately if you take them anywhere. (0 gravity may be a prob tho)

Digital mass scales wont work if you take them off earth, they are just doing math based on expecting earth’s gravity.

Edit: I re-read your question. Really it sounds like what you are asking is how do mass scales work. You have an object, and you say, this is 100 grams. then you put that on one side of the perfectly balanced scale. then you put an object you are trying to discover the mass of on the other side, if it balances, you know the object you are “weighing” is 100g too. But if you took that scale off world, both the left and right had side of that scale are still 100g, and the scale would still balance.

Also, conversion between grams and pounds equations you find assume you mean you are still on earth, and would need to be different on different celestial bodies.

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