If the attraction of the sun is suddenly ceased, the earth would continue to move in a straight line making a tangent with the original orbit. This statemen...

The correct answer is the First law of motion. The First law of motion, also known as the law of inertia, states that an object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless acted upon by an external force. In this case, the earth is moving in its orbit around the sun because of the force of gravity between the two objects. If the force of gravity suddenly ceased, the earth would no longer be acted upon by an external force and would continue to move in a straight line, making a tangent with its original orbit. This idea is attributed to Sir Isaac Newton, who developed the laws of motion and the law of universal gravitation. However, the specific statement mentioned in the question is derived from the First law of motion.