Cavendish experiment
E33528
The Cavendish experiment was an 18th-century physics experiment by Henry Cavendish that measured the tiny gravitational attraction between lead spheres, allowing the first calculation of the gravitational constant and the mass of the Earth.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Cavendish experiment on the density of the Earth | 1 |
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
gravitational experiment
ⓘ
historical scientific experiment ⓘ physics experiment ⓘ |
| aimedTo | determine the density of the Earth ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs | weighing the Earth ⓘ |
| approximateValueFound |
Earth's mean density about 5.4 times that of water
ⓘ
gravitational constant close to modern accepted value ⓘ |
| assumes | inverse-square law of gravitation ⓘ |
| basedOn |
law of universal gravitation
ⓘ
surface form:
Newton's law of universal gravitation
|
| category |
experiments in classical mechanics
ⓘ
experiments in gravitation ⓘ |
| conductedBy | Henry Cavendish ⓘ |
| enabled |
calculation of the mass of the Earth
ⓘ
first calculation of the gravitational constant G ⓘ |
| field |
gravitational physics
ⓘ
physics ⓘ |
| hasParticipant |
large fixed lead spheres
ⓘ
small movable lead spheres ⓘ |
| hasQuantity |
density of the Earth
ⓘ
gravitational constant ⓘ |
| historicalSignificance |
confirmed Newtonian gravitation at laboratory scale
ⓘ
provided first reasonably accurate value for Earth's mass ⓘ |
| influenced |
later measurements of gravitational constant
ⓘ
precision experimental gravitation ⓘ |
| location | Cavendish's estate in Clapham, London ⓘ |
| mainSubject |
gravitational constant
ⓘ
mass of the Earth ⓘ universal gravitation ⓘ |
| measures |
gravitational attraction between masses
ⓘ
tiny gravitational force ⓘ |
| method |
balancing gravitational torque with torsional restoring torque
ⓘ
measuring torsion angle of a suspended rod ⓘ |
| notableFor |
first laboratory measurement of gravitational force between masses
ⓘ
high precision for its time ⓘ |
| performedIn | late 18th century ⓘ |
| performedInYear |
1797
ⓘ
1798 ⓘ |
| publicationYear | 1798 ⓘ |
| publishedIn | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Newtonian mechanics
ⓘ
precision measurement ⓘ torsion pendulum ⓘ |
| result |
experimental value for the mean density of the Earth
ⓘ
indirect determination of gravitational constant ⓘ |
| uses |
horizontal rod
ⓘ
lead spheres ⓘ torsion balance ⓘ torsion wire ⓘ |
Referenced by (3)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Cavendish experiment on the density of the Earth