All Questions
Tagged with eccentric-orbit orbital-mechanics
11 questions
3
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When objects fall from the far Solar System does that usually make the orbit more or less eccentric?
In general, when an object falls from the far Solar System and swings around the Sun, does that usually make the orbit more or less eccentric? Or, assuming it doesn't get ejected from the Solar System ...
7
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2
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What are the orbital velocities of the other planets? For objects in a 'Low-Earth-Orbit' around planets other than Earth, e.g.?
I was pondering this question recently, but most sites I can find only mention the speeds/velocities of the planets around the Sun when I look for 'orbital velocities' of the planets.
I tried ...
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4
votes
1
answer
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Velocity Verlet algorithm creating odd orbits
I am using the velocity Verlet integration to make an N-Body simulator but the results are odd. If I use simple Newtonian physics I get a closed orbit (btw im testing with 2 planets at first) but if I ...
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2
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0
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Confused about the derivation of the x co-ord of the focus in the Lambert solution? [closed]
I'm looking into how the Lambert solution works but there's one bit I'm stuck on. From Wikipedia's Lambert's problem; Solution for an assumed elliptic transfer orbit (starting at Eq. 11):
I don't ...
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2
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1
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How can I find the width of an orbit knowing some values?
I need to find the width/x-radius of an orbit, which is ellipse shaped, knowing variables like the orbit's length(perihelion + aphelion in this case) and the eccentricity. I am not sure if this is ...
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4
votes
1
answer
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Why are asteroids with circular orbits rare?
Regarding this excellent question by Swike: Why are asteroids with zero orbital inclination rare?, I recently proposed that orbits with zero inclination are rare as a natural result of the statistical ...
- 16.7k
6
votes
1
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Kepler's equation and eccentric anomaly
From the wiki article about eccentric anomaly follows:
$$\cos E = \frac{x}{a}$$
$$\sin E = \frac{y}{b}$$
where E - eccentric anomaly, a - semi-major axis, b - semi-minor axis, P = P(x,y) a point on ...
- 63
3
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1
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What kind of effects can maintain Uranus' rings' eccentricities?
The recent paper Thermal Emission from the Uranian Ring System has been in the news recently. The introduction mentions:
The ε ring, the brightest and most massive of the narrow rings, was shown to ...
- 30.7k
4
votes
1
answer
153
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snapshot of solar system
I am working on a little project where I want to simulate the solar system to teach myself working with python and OOP.
I want to calculate the orbits "real", from tangential velocities and ...
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4
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4
answers
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Can one approximate the semi-major axis of an orbit as the average orbital distance for eccentric orbits?
Kepler's 3rd Law (regarding the relation between orbital period and the semi-major axis of an orbit) applies to all elliptical orbits. But as I understand it, the only reason it is safe to use the ...
user15317
3
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Can the Moon provide momentum to an object in Earth's orbit? Gravity Assisted Boost [closed]
Can a satellite maintain an equatorial orbit around Earth near the Moon's orbit to receive partial gravitational boosts by gaining momentum as the satellite passes though the Moon's gravity well?
I'...
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