The difference between mass, density and weight please.

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The difference between mass, density and weight please.

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“Weight” assumes a certain gravity. The “Weight” of an object changes depending on whether you’re on the Earth, the Moon where it’s lower, or in orbit where it’s always 0.

“Mass” takes what “weight” is supposed to mean, but without the gravity context. A cube of water 1 meter on each side has a mass of 1000 kg, regardless of gravity. Even in orbit where everything is “weightless”, a big barrel of water still feels heavy if you tried to bench press it. A car has high mass, which means rolling it down a level road is hard to do by pushing it even in neutral, vs a small child’s wagon which has much less mass on the same road. Gravity isn’t involved in this situation.

“Density” is the fraction of mass divided by volume of space occupied. From our cube of water, we have a density of 1 gram per cubic centimeter, or 1 tonne per cubic meter, which are both the same number. Air is much less dense, weighing a few grams per cubic meter. Lead is much more dense, and even a ball of lead the size of a baseball would weigh many many pounds.

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