Two point charges each carrying a charge of + 4.5 e - 6 c are located 4.5 meters away from each other. how strong is the electrostatic force between the two points, and is this force a repulsive force or an attractive force (k = 9.0 e9 nm2/c2)

0.009 N, repulsive

Explanation:

The electrostatic force between two electric charges is given by:

where

k is the Coulomb's constant

q1 and q2 are the two charges

r is the separation between the two charges

In this problem, we have

are the two charges

r = 4.5 m is their separation

Substituting into the equation, we find

Moreover, the force is repulsive. In fact, the following rules apply:

- When two charges have same sign, they repel each other

- When two charges have opposite signs, they attract each other

newton's first law of motion