How Does Gravity Work?

Gravity is a fundamental force that attracts all objects with mass toward each other. According to Einstein's theory of general relativity, gravity isn't really a 'force' in the traditional sense, but rather a curvature of spacetime caused by mass and energy. Imagine spacetime as a stretched rubber sheet: when you place a heavy ball on it, it creates a dip. Smaller objects near this dip naturally roll toward the heavy ball. The more massive an object, the stronger its gravitational pull. This is why planets orbit stars, moons orbit planets, and why we stay firmly planted on Earth. The strength of gravity decreases with distance following an inverse square law: double the distance, and gravity becomes four times weaker. Gravity is actually the weakest of the four fundamental forces, but it has unlimited range and affects everything with mass, shaping the structure of the entire universe.