water trampoline orbit image
Jon Jon
In general relativity, why, if heavy objects distort space-time and the curvature pulls in surrounding objects (like the sun is on a trampoline and the earth is pulled in by the curve), does the earth not fall all the way into the sun? It seems like it should eventually, like water going down a drain, because the sun is much heavier than the earth.
Also, if two beams of light are travelling towards each other then relative to the beams of light the opposing beam of light is travelling twice as fast as the speed of light. How is this debuked? Has it been?
Answer
Were the Earth not orbiting, it would fall into the sun. Centripedal force at work...
Water going down the drain loses energy to viscous drag, the fluid equivalent of friction.
However, orbiting bodies are traveling through a pretty good vacuum.
Though tidal forces can act as a drag to slow rotation.
Velocities do not add in Relativity the same way they do in Newtonian physics.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velocity-addition_formula
Were the Earth not orbiting, it would fall into the sun. Centripedal force at work...
Water going down the drain loses energy to viscous drag, the fluid equivalent of friction.
However, orbiting bodies are traveling through a pretty good vacuum.
Though tidal forces can act as a drag to slow rotation.
Velocities do not add in Relativity the same way they do in Newtonian physics.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velocity-addition_formula
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