what keeps earth from falling into the sun ?
gravitational pull or inertia
Gravitational pull would pull it into the sun. The inertia of its orbit keeps this from happening
Do we have the entire thing
The Earth is prevented from falling into the Sun mainly due to two factors: gravitational pull and inertia.
1. Gravitational Pull: The Sun exerts a strong gravitational force on all objects, including the Earth. This force attracts the Earth towards the Sun, trying to pull it closer. However, the Earth is also moving in a circular path around the Sun.
2. Inertia: Inertia is the tendency of an object to resist changes in its motion. The Earth, due to its large mass, has a significant amount of inertia. This means that the Earth continues to move forward in its orbit around the Sun, due to its momentum, rather than falling directly into the Sun.
These two forces, gravitational pull and inertia, counteract each other, resulting in the Earth maintaining a stable orbit around the Sun. The gravitational pull keeps the Earth attracted to the Sun, while the Earth's inertia keeps it moving forward, preventing it from falling into the Sun.
The reason Earth does not fall into the Sun is due to a balance between gravitational pull and inertia.
Gravitational pull is the force of attraction between two objects. The Sun, being much larger and more massive than Earth, exerts a gravitational pull on Earth. This force tries to pull Earth towards the Sun.
On the other hand, inertia is an object's tendency to resist changes in its state of motion. Earth, like any object in motion, has inertia. It wants to keep moving in a straight line. The combination of Earth's motion and its inertia counteracts the gravitational force pulling it towards the Sun.
Essentially, Earth is continuously moving in a curved path around the Sun. The centripetal force generated by Earth's motion counterbalances the gravitational pull, keeping Earth in orbit.
To calculate the gravitational force between the Sun and Earth, you can use the formula:
F = G * (m1 * m2) / r^2
Where:
F is the gravitational force between the Sun and Earth,
G is the universal gravitational constant (approximately 6.67430 x 10^-11 N m^2/kg^2),
m1 and m2 are the masses of the Sun and Earth, respectively,
r is the distance between the centers of mass of the Sun and Earth.
To calculate the inertia of Earth, you can use Newton's second law of motion:
F = m * a
Where:
F is the net force acting on Earth,
m is the mass of Earth,
a is the acceleration due to Earth's motion.
In this case, the net force is the combination of the gravitational force pulling Earth towards the Sun and the force of Earth's inertia opposing that motion. When these forces are equal and opposite, Earth remains in a stable orbit around the Sun.