A student claims that the planets orbit the sun because of the gravitational force, Which statement best supports this claim?
The gravitational force between the sun and the planets pulls the planets towards the sun, causing them to orbit.
The statement that best supports the claim that the planets orbit the sun because of the gravitational force is as follows:
"The gravitational force between the sun and the planets causes the planets to continually move in curved paths around the sun."
To understand which statement best supports the claim that planets orbit the sun because of the gravitational force, we can look into the principles of gravity and planetary motion.
The statement that best supports this claim would be:
"Planets exhibit elliptical orbits around the sun, with the sun at one of the foci of the ellipse, as predicted by Kepler's laws of planetary motion."
This statement supports the claim because it refers to Kepler's laws, which describe the behavior of planets and the sun in a gravitational system. Kepler's laws explain that planets move in elliptical orbits around the sun, with the sun located at one of the foci of the ellipse. This observation can only be explained by the gravitational force between the planets and the sun, where the sun's gravitational pull acts as a centripetal force, keeping the planets in their orbits.
To arrive at this answer, one can recall the principles of gravity and planetary motion, specifically Kepler's laws. Kepler's laws were developed by Johannes Kepler in the 17th century and provide a mathematical description of how planets move in relation to the sun. By understanding and applying these laws, we can support the claim that planets orbit the sun due to the gravitational force.