An astronaut measures his weight on the moon and gets a reading of 150 N. If his mass is about 90 kg, how fast can he expect to accelerate in free fall?

To determine the acceleration in free fall on the moon, we can use Newton's second law of motion, which relates weight, mass, and acceleration. Weight is defined as the force acting on an object due to gravity and can be calculated with the formula:

Weight = Mass × Acceleration due to gravity (W = m × g).

In this case, the astronaut's weight on the moon is given as 150 N, and his mass is 90 kg. To find the acceleration due to gravity on the moon (g), we can rearrange the formula to solve for g:

g = Weight / Mass.

Substituting the known values:

g = 150 N / 90 kg = 1.6667 m/s².

When rounded, this value is approximately 1.7 m/s², which aligns with the information provided. Therefore, the astronaut can expect to accelerate at about 1.7 m/s² in free fall on the moon.

This value reflects the moon's lower gravitational pull compared to Earth, where the acceleration due to gravity is roughly 9.8 m/s². Understanding this principle helps explain why objects weigh less on the moon but retain the same mass, resulting in a lower gravitational acceleration.