According to general relativity, why does Earth orbit the Sun?
A) Matter contains quarks, and Earth and the Sun attract each other with the "color force" between their quarks.
B) Space around the Sun is curved, and Earth follows a geodesic in this curved space.
C) The Sun exerts a gravitational force on Earth across empty space.
D) Earth and the Sun are continually exchanging photons of light in a way that holds Earth in orbit.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

General relativity explains that massive objects like the Sun cause a curvature of spacetime around them. Earth orbits the Sun by following a geodesic path in this curved spacetime, not because of a force acting across space in the Newtonian sense.

According to General Relativity, Why Does Earth Orbit the Sun