What is responsible for earth's elliptical orbit around the sun?
a. the gravitational pull of the sun
b. magnetic forces both attracting and repelling other planetary bodies
c. momentum caused by the earth's rotation
d. balance between centripetal and centifugal forces
The correct answer is a. the gravitational pull of the sun.
The Earth's elliptical orbit around the sun is primarily caused by the gravitational pull of the sun. The force of gravity between the Earth and the sun acts as a centripetal force, keeping the Earth in orbit. This force is responsible for pulling the Earth towards the sun, causing it to move in a curved path around the sun.
To find the answer to this question, you can use your understanding of physics and the principles of gravity. Knowing that gravity is the force that attracts objects towards each other based on their mass, it becomes clear that the sun's gravitational pull is what keeps the Earth in its elliptical orbit.
This knowledge is based on Isaac Newton's law of universal gravitation, which states that every object in the universe attracts every other object with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.
Therefore, the correct answer is a. the gravitational pull of the sun.