How did Newton's Law of Gravity explain why celestial objects stay in orbit?
A combination of the forward motion of the objects and the pulling force of gravity create the rounded orbit shapes
Gravity pushes objects across circular paths by attracting them to ellipses
Newton explained how gravity creates the foci that objects orbit around
Objects need the force of gravity to continue moving in the current orbit directions they were already moving in
The correct statement would be: A combination of the forward motion of the objects and the pulling force of gravity create the rounded orbit shapes.
Newton's Law of Gravity explains why celestial objects stay in orbit by a combination of the forward motion of the objects and the pulling force of gravity. The gravitational force exerted by one object acts as an attraction towards another object, causing it to follow a curved path. This curved path, known as an orbit, is a result of the balance between the forward momentum of the object and the inward gravitational force.
In other words, the force of gravity acts as a centripetal force that pushes objects across circular paths, keeping them in orbit. Newton's law of universal gravitation states that every object in the universe attracts every other object with a force directly proportional to their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers. This means that the larger the mass of an object, the stronger its gravitational pull.
Furthermore, Newton explained that the gravitational force between two objects creates two foci, around which objects orbit. This concept is known as Kepler's laws of planetary motion, derived from Newton's law of gravity. These laws describe the mathematical relationship between the periods, distances, and masses of orbiting celestial bodies.
Therefore, celestial objects require the force of gravity to continue moving in their current orbit directions. Without gravity, objects would move in straight lines due to their inertia and not follow the curved paths characteristic of orbits.