Question

A strong magnet in a junkyard can lift a car; what does this tell you about the relative strength of the magnetic and gravitational forces on the car?

Answer 1

Answer:

The given question checks our knowledge about the basic physics which includes gravitational forces and magnets.

Now, in a junkyard we know to lift cars there is a huge magnet placed to lift the cars. So as the magnet is huge in size it has a huge magnetic properties which in turn creates a strong magnetic field which allows the magnet to lift up the car.

But on the other hand as we know that gravitational force pulls every towards the ground but in this case as the magnetic field is strong so the attracting force of the magnet is much more than the gravitational force.

Answer 2

Answer:  

If a strong magnet can lift a car in a junkyard, this means that the magnetic force is more dominant on the body of car than the gravitational force acting on the car.

Explanation:

The body of the car is made up of metals which are magnetic in nature. As time passes, the metal loses in weight from the body of the car. The car becomes light when it is kept in a junkyard because it became weak, the body parts will have reduced weight. So, the gravitational force acting on the car will be less as the gravitational force is directly proportional to the weight of the body.

$\bold{\text { Gravitational Force (F) } =\text { Mass } \times \text { Acceleration due to gravity }}$

But the magnetic forces will be able to attract the body more. So, the strong magnet can overcome the gravitational force acting on the car and thus lifting the car from the car.