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If gravity is intrinsically so weak compared to the strong force, why do we say that gravity rather than the strong force keeps the planets in orbit around the Sun?

Answer 1

Gravity may be relatively weak but it acts over long distances, unlike the strong force.

Only very short distances are affected by the strong and weak nuclear forces; the strong force merely holds the nucleons together within a nucleus.

Only gravity has the range to keep planets in orbit around a sun; electromagnetic force and gravity act over much shorter distances.

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Answer 2

Ariana Acosta

The strength of the gravitational force between two objects is determined by the masses of the objects and the distance between them. Although gravity is weaker than the strong force at the particle level, celestial bodies have much larger masses and distances, making gravity dominant in astronomical scales.

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Answer from HIX Tutor

When evaluating a one-sided limit, you need to be careful when a quantity is approaching zero since its sign is different depending on which way it is approaching zero from. Let us look at some examples.