How does space get bent?

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. The warp, in turn, creates the effect of gravity, redirecting the path of objects that travel into it.

Why is the spacetime curved?

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.

How do we know spacetime is curved?

In general relativity, spacetime is not ‘flat’ but is curved by the presence of massive bodies. This artistic representation visualises spacetime as a simplified, two-dimensional surface, which is being distorted by the presence of three massive bodies, represented as coloured spheres.

Can time be folded?

Science does support some amount of time-bending, though. An observer traveling near the speed of light will experience time, with all its aftereffects (boredom, aging, etc.) much more slowly than an observer at rest.

Does gravity bend time?

Gravity does not bend time. Gravity is associated with the slowing of time, but that is because the gravitational effect and the time dilation effect are due to the same phenomena. The proximity of mass energy slows time and contracts space (this is what is called the curving of spacetime).

What did Einstein mean when he said that gravity warps space?

the curvature of spacetime
Gravity is the curvature of spacetime It is here that Einstein connected the dots to suggest that gravity is the warping of space and time. Gravity is the curvature of the universe, caused by massive bodies, which determines the path that objects travel. That curvature is dynamical, moving as those objects move.

How does gravity warp 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.

Is our space curved?

You might notice some unusual phenomena, like walking to your mailbox and ending up in Mongolia. Scientists believe, however, that our space is smoothly curved — more like a ball than a wad of paper — and thus the effects are only noticeable on cosmological scales.

What causes the curvature of space?

Locally, spacetime is curved by the presence of massive objects. The universe’s total mass/energy density has an effect on the overall curvature of space.

Does the universe have negative curvature?

And if the universe’s density is less than the critical density, then the universe is open and has negative curvature, like the surface of a saddle. Measurements from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) have shown the observable universe to have a density very close to the critical density (within a 0.4\% margin of error).

Can a 3-dimensional being move up and down in space?

The laws of 2D space as understood by 2D beings would restrict light (and everything else) from moving up and down; in fact, there would be no up or down. So as a three-dimensional being, your actions would violate the Flatlanders’ laws of physics.