What is the primary, persistent misunderstanding regarding gravity in space?
Answer
Space is utterly devoid of gravity.
The text emphasizes that the idea of space being utterly devoid of gravity is one of the most persistent misunderstandings; the reality is that space contains loads of gravity.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary, persistent misunderstanding regarding gravity in space?What is the fundamental definition of gravity described in the text?Why do astronauts appear weightless while outside the ISS?What happens when an object achieves orbit, according to the text's analogy?What phenomenon is actually observed when someone sees a 'falling star'?Why is the idea of a true star 'falling' onto Earth physically absurd?What causes the apparent rising and setting of stars observed from Earth's surface?How does gravity facilitate the initial formation of a star?In the context of stellar evolution, what represents the ultimate 'fall' dictated by mass and gravity?What dictates the complex orbital paths of stars within a galaxy like the Milky Way?How can the aftermath of a supernova contribute to the creation of new stars?