Mass

Mass is a fundamental property of matter and is defined as the amount of matter present in an object.

  • Mass is an intrinsic property of an object and is independent of its location or the gravitational field it is in.
  • A large object made of a given material has greater mass than a small object made of the same material because it contains more matter.
  • Mass is not the same as weight because weight varies with gravity while mass remains constant.
    • An object of a known mass weighs more on earth than on the moon due to differences in gravity.
  • The SI unit of mass is the kilogram (kg).
  • Weight is the force exerted on an object due to gravity and is measured in newtons (N).