Are all the objects in the universe spherical in shape?
The Chronify
Scientific Thought: Why are almost all celestial bodies in the universe, like the Earth or the Sun, spherical in shape? The answer is yes. The main reason is gravitational force. Planets are formed when cosmic dust particles come together. Their mass gradually increases. At some point, their gravitational pull starts to have a significant effect. As the planets orbit around the Sun, they attract surrounding dust particles and pull them toward the center.
The planet’s center attracts every point on its surface equally, similar to how the spokes of a bicycle wheel hold the rim in place. Due to this force, planets take on a spherical shape. Other planets and stars in the universe are also spherical in the same way.
However, the middle of larger planets bulges slightly, so they aren’t perfectly spherical like a football. When large planets rotate, the centrifugal force acting on the material along the equator causes this effect. That’s why the North and South Poles of the Earth are slightly flattened, while the equatorial region is slightly bulging.
Spherical shapes in the universe are common because the dominant long range forces like gravity and electromagnetism are central (in that they only depend on the distance between objects).
Our planet, the moon, and the sun are all spherical for this reason, gravity pulls every object in towards the center equally.
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