Difference between Mass and Weight
Mass
1) Mass is the quantity of matter stored in substance.
2) It provides inertia at rest to the substance.
3) Mass of body is always constant at all places in the universe.
4) Mass is scalar quantity for which direction is not required for measurement.
5) SI unit of mass is kilogram and CGS unit is gram.
6) Mass and momentum both provides the rotational inertia when object is in rotational motion.
Weight
1) To Weight is the gravitational force exerted on object by planet.
2) It provides potential energy to object.
3) According to definition, force is given as
F = ma
Here this force is due to gravity hence, it is nothing but weight of object.
∴ Weight, W = mg
Where ‘g’ is the acceleration due to gravity.
4) Since the value of ‘g’ is not same at all points, the weight of body also changes from point to point.
5) Weight is vector quantity, hence its direction plays important role in its measurement.
6) SI unit of weight is netwton (N), and CGS unit is dyne.
7) Weight of object is maximum at poles on earth and minimum at equator of earth.