If jupiter's gravity warps io....?

Question

then how can the current 'sheet' model of gravity be true?

by sheet model, i mean how they explain space-time as a sheet, and everything sitting on it creates a dent in this fabric...

jupiter's gravity actually distorts io's crust, stretching and compressing it, and warping the shape (it's why io is so volcanic) this shouldn't happen if this model is correct....

the only thing that should be effected by jupiter's gravity, is the speed, not the shape....

Answer 1

The "sheet model," as you call it, is not a model. It is merely an oversimplified illustration of the equations of relativity. Einstein was very well aware of tides when he derived relativity. In fact, in the "sheet model," the difference in curvature of the sheet at the front of Io, compared to the back, is what causes the tension in the planet. We call this difference in curvature across a body a "tide."

Answer 2

It should be born in mind that the idea of a sheet was used merely to aid non-scientists to picture what a massive object does to a surrounding space.  Spacetime surrounding a massive object is itself not flat like a sheet, but follows the contours of the object.  In the case of planets, such as the Earth, or Jupiter etc., that shape is approximately globular, as this is the most compact shape in nature.  Because Io travels at a certain speed, it remains in orbit, but tidal forces exerted by Jupiter pull and push the surface of Io and distort it considerably.  Similar forces act upon the Earth, in the shape of tides formed in the oceans by the gravitational pull of the Moon though, of course, on a much smaller scale.  The flat sheet "model" is not correct as such, but merely an easier way to picture what happens.

Answer 3

my understanding was that jupiter wasnt the only culprit in this effect but the other moons also played a hand in it. i believe it was getting tugged on by 2 other moons and the planet. i remember seeing it on the universe on history.

Answer 4

The "sheet" model of gravity isn't true.  It's a dumbed-down version of Einstein's special relativity, describing how space-time distorts around larges masses: it curves.  

If the sheet model were true, then nothing would have any gravitational effect on anything else.  The Earth would not have a gravitational pull on the Moon, so Luna would fly away.  (Technically, it is, but only by about 2 cm/year, not as quickly as it would be if there were no gravitational forces.)  The Sun wouldn't have a gravitational pull on Earth, so we would either fall into the Sun and roast or go flying off into space and freeze to death.  Seeing as we're still alive and the Moon is still here, the sheet model is not true.