Sage-Tips

What is the consequence of the curvature of spacetime?

The curvature of spacetime means that the path of light is deflected around massive objects. This effect is known as gravitational lensing, and it can affect the shape of an event’s light cone (discussed in Chapter 7), allowing light to travel into previously forbidden regions.

How does the size of an object in space affect its gravitational pull?

Gravitational force is an attraction between masses. The greater the size of the masses, the greater the size of the gravitational force (also called the gravity force). The gravitational force weakens rapidly with increasing distance between masses.

Do small objects bend space time?

Large objects such as the Sun and planets aren’t the only masses that warp the fabric of space-time. Anything with mass—including your body—bends this four-dimensional cosmic grid. A large object with little mass creates a smaller distortion than a tiny object with a huge mass.

How does the mass of the object affect space-time?

Gravitational time dilation occurs because objects with a lot of mass create a strong gravitational field. The gravitational field is really a curving of space and time. The stronger the gravity, the more spacetime curves, and the slower time itself proceeds.

What does the resulting shape of space-time cause?

space-time, and the resulting shape of space-time causes . Gravitational redshift occurs because time slows down in a strong gravitational field. This causes the frequency of a wavelength of light to lower.

Why does spacetime curvature cause acceleration?

When space time curves the inertial frame changes. An object in free fall is in inertial frame, so any object falling caused by Space-time curvature is for the same reason any object does not change it’s state of motion in a inertial frame.

Why do smaller space objects orbit larger space objects?

A: This is gravity! The same gravity that keeps us down on the ground keeps planets in orbit. However, in space, the smaller object will feel the pull of the larger one much more strongly, which is why it will begin to orbit it.

How does distance affect gravitational pull?

Since gravitational force is inversely proportional to the square of the separation distance between the two interacting objects, more separation distance will result in weaker gravitational forces. So as two objects are separated from each other, the force of gravitational attraction between them also decreases.

Why does mass bend space and what exactly in space is being bent?

When a smaller mass passes near a larger mass, it curves toward the larger mass because spacetime itself is curved toward the larger mass. The smaller mass is not “attracted” to the larger mass by any force. The smaller mass simply follows the structure of curved spacetime near the larger mass.