What governs motions of stars, galaxies and other celestial objects orbiting one another?

• Correct Answer: gravitational force
• magnetic force
• electrical force
• frictional force

Explanation: 6.6 Satellites and Kepler’s Laws: An Argument for Simplicity Examples of gravitational orbits abound. Hundreds of artificial satellites orbit Earth together with thousands of pieces of debris. The Moon’s orbit about Earth has intrigued humans from time immemorial. The orbits of planets, asteroids, meteors, and comets about the Sun are no less interesting. If we look further, we see almost unimaginable numbers of stars, galaxies, and other celestial objects orbiting one another and interacting through gravity. All these motions are governed by gravitational force, and it is possible to describe them to various degrees of precision. Precise descriptions of complex systems must be made with large computers. However, we can describe an important class of orbits without the use of computers, and we shall find it instructive to study them. These orbits have the following characteristics: 1. A small mass.

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