Questions regarding an object 'falling around' another object, due to a combination of gravity and momentum.
2
votes
4answers
54 views
Why don't all perseid meteors follow the same trajectory?
Since these bits of debris crossing Earth's orbit have the same relative speed, why aren't they drawing parallel paths in the upper atmosphere? (consider one hour of observation to minimise Earth's ...
5
votes
1answer
112 views
Lunar orbit distance
Can anyone calculate the distance the moon travels in a single year? I can calculate it as it is close to 2.4 million km, but I need adjustments as the earth is moving and so is the Sun. So, I need ...
4
votes
0answers
44 views
Computing orbit positions of Jovian Satellites / Moons using JPL data
I've been trying to build a model of the solar system in a game. Thus far I've succeeded in placing each of the planets in position using Keplerian elements and formulae from https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/...
2
votes
0answers
60 views
Weird 2 body swapping orbit
While messing around in https://dan-ball.jp/en/javagame/planet/. I came across a pretty stable orbit of 2 bodies around a star
Orbit yellow:
Orbit Blue:
full album: https://imgur.com/a/ruyenmY
Is ...
0
votes
3answers
91 views
What might be the cause of the hot summer on Earth in 2018? [closed]
I have a question relating to the hot temperature this summer. There are 3 reasons that I can come up with:
Chemical, greenhouse effect.
Increased solar activity.
Orbital Resonance. The Earth is ...
3
votes
2answers
57 views
Is it possible for a planet to have multiple moons in a nearly stationary orbit?
I have done a lot of searching online and while I have been able to find out that theoretically a moon could exist in a near-synchronous/stationary orbit, I am wondering if it is possible for multiple ...
1
vote
1answer
94 views
How did “oddball” Valetudo, Jupiter's new prograde moon, end up in a wider orbit?
I just saw this question and that got me to this NASA page which led me to this scientific article.
“Our other discovery is a real oddball and has an orbit like no other known Jovian moon,” ...
-1
votes
1answer
40 views
The total number of solar eclipses in a century repeats roughly every 6th century
We know that on a longer time scale (millions of years) the orbits of planes are unstable and it is impossible to make predictions about eclipses millions of years into the future. But on a shorter ...
24
votes
8answers
9k views
Simple experimental evidence that Earth revolves around Sun
What are the simplest experiments or calculations that give evidence that the earth revolves around the sun? Can you please explain them and reference the history? Many simple explanations such as ...
1
vote
1answer
72 views
Why is the Innermost Stable Circular Orbit (ISCO) of a non-rotating black-hole 3 times the Schwarzschild radius?
If anyone has a derivation of this result, it would be appreciated greatly.
2
votes
1answer
79 views
Simple mathematical models of solar systems
I’m a hobbyist programmer with a profound love for procedural content generation. I’m working on a 2D space exploration game and while it’s not meant to simulate anything real, I’d like to give it a ...
2
votes
2answers
79 views
Terminology of Orbits
A hopefully simple terminology question: When you have an object that orbits another object in space, what do you call the object being orbited in relation to the object orbiting?
For instance, you ...
1
vote
1answer
75 views
Are large body orbits self correcting?
If a rogue planet disrupts Earth's orbit slightly to cause a long winter or summer will the Earth's orbit normalize back close its original orbit over time? Could a Planet X or some other elliptical ...
7
votes
1answer
143 views
Saturn's tropical year?
What is the value of Saturn's "tropical year" (as opposed to its "sidereal year").
I am seeing it listed as 10 days shorter (10,747 days) than the sidereal year (10,759.22 days).
How could this be ...
4
votes
2answers
165 views
Hypothetically, if the sun stays the same size forever, when will the Earth fall into it?
Hypothetically speaking (once again), if the Sun stays the same size forever (i.e. it somehow maintains a stable hydrogen supply and the helium product just disappears), how long would it take before ...
3
votes
1answer
57 views
Is there a significant temperature difference on the moon from apogee to perigee or vice-versa?
Do those few thousand kilometers of difference going around the earth significantly affect the amount of thermal energy the moon receives from the sun to warm up its surface?
Also, are there more ...
4
votes
1answer
126 views
What makes an exoplanet to orbit around its star backwards?And why did we consider our orbital movement to be forward?
I read somewhere that an exoplanet in the name of HAT-P-7B orbits its star backwards.Why?
And why did we consider our orbital movement to be forward?Is there some scientific reason to consider the ...
2
votes
6answers
198 views
Would things be exactly the same if the Sun was orbiting the Earth and the Earth was in the center of the Solar System?
Would things be the same if the Sun was orbiting Earth and the Earth was in the center of the Solar System, or would there be any big difference?
It seems like why people before thought the Earth was ...
3
votes
1answer
117 views
Are the planets in our solar system in free fall?
If I’m correct, the International Space Station is in free fall, but is moving fast enough to keep it’s position. Assuming that is true, does that mean that some/all planets orbiting the Sun are in ...
3
votes
1answer
160 views
How far out can the sun keep celestial objects revolving?
Astronomers define the Solar System as the distance under the influence of gravity from the Sun.
I read that the Oort cloud is probably the farthest object that surrounds the sun. The sphere of this ...
4
votes
2answers
93 views
Does the relative motion between planets other than Venus and Earth form shapes such as the Flower of Venus?
I was reading about the Pentagram/Flower of Venus, and how it is caused by a 13:8 ratio between their orbits. I found this GIF particularly fascinating.
My question is, if the ratio changed, would ...
1
vote
0answers
37 views
Why does the Earth's axial tilt create an east-west variation in the analemma? [duplicate]
I've been reading about the Earth's analemma from Wikipedia, and I am having trouble visualizing one component. Let's build up to my question.
If the Earth had a circular orbit and no axial tilt, the ...
6
votes
2answers
86 views
How do we measure one complete orbit?
This is being asked from a lay-person point of view. However, please do not hesitate to give more detailed answers that require prior knowledge - if these answer the question more accurately.
My ...
1
vote
2answers
87 views
Can Two Stars of One Same Type Orbit Each Other?
This is a simple, textbook definition of a binary star orbit. One low-mass star orbits a higher-mass star in a narrow but definitive center. For example, the high-mass star would be our own sun--a G-...
0
votes
1answer
36 views
Calculate eccentricity from apside altitudes? [closed]
I need to calculate the eccentricity of a satellite orbit with only the apside altitudes (height above the surface of the Earth), 400 and 1500 km. However, I don't know the semi-major axis ($a$) or ...
4
votes
1answer
70 views
How would one calculate the synodic period between 3 planets?
I don't know if this is the correct term, but how would one calculate the time it takes for 3 planets to lie on the same line?
0
votes
1answer
60 views
What does the angle between plane of earth's orbit and ecliptic vary between?
What does the angle between the plane of the earth's orbit and the ecliptic (now about 23.5 degrees) vary between, and over what time scale?
0
votes
0answers
36 views
Inconsistent Precession (Apsidal Rotation) Rate formulae for circular Clairaultian Orbits
TWO CLAIRAULTIAN GRAVITATIONAL FORMULAE
Wells 2011/2016 refers to two well-known patterns of centripetal acceleration which (when applied in a Euclidean-Newtonian orbital system) produce "perihelion ...
0
votes
2answers
46 views
Mass accumulation rate and orbit-time of earth
According to me following reason of mass accumulation of earth has been completely overlooked so far.
The sunrays that fall on the oceans travel deep into water and finally get converted into mass ...
5
votes
2answers
346 views
Does the Earth orbiting around the Earth-Moon barycenter cause a measurable centrifugal force?
I just realized the Earth is not a stationary object with the moon orbiting around it. As shown in this minimalist animation from Wikipedia, the Earth actually orbits a common barycenter with the ...
6
votes
2answers
135 views
What are the periods of Saturn's rings?
I don't mean necessarily a granular chart of all of the different rings at different distances, but is it days? Weeks?
10
votes
1answer
2k views
What is the distance of the Earth's orbit around the Moon?
I realize the Earth and the Moon both orbit around their shared center of mass, and that in the case of the Earth and Moon this center is "inside" the Earth. However, I'm looking for an approach to ...
3
votes
1answer
83 views
How much are Neptune's and Uranus' orbits perturbed by Pluto and other KBOs?
Reading another question, I came across the argument that inconsistencies in Neptune's and Uranus' orbits lead to the discovery of Pluto. This brief write-up mentions Percival Lowell and William H. ...
1
vote
1answer
66 views
Binary Orbit around the Earth?
Is a orbit possible where 2 objects going in opposite directions can intersect repeatedly with minor course corrections?
0
votes
1answer
173 views
Farthest Orbit around the Earth? [duplicate]
What is the farthest orbit that can be achieved around the Earth? How fast is that?
Not the question below:
Feel free to answer in a comment
I ask because of this question: https://worldbuilding....
3
votes
1answer
60 views
How to mathematically describe a planet's eccentric orbit?
Is there a formula for describing a planet's position along an eccentric orbit over time? I am particularly interested in the elliptical case (0 < e < 1).
I understand that the planet has a ...
4
votes
1answer
103 views
How would one calculate the synodic period of the Earth and an elliptical orbit?
For example, when would someone with a telescope be able to see Starman and his Roadster (when will the Tesla roadster's elliptical orbit cross ours again, and how would that be calculated?)
For two ...
2
votes
0answers
26 views
Aaditya L1 mission ISRO
ISRO's next mission to the Sun is Aditya-L1, (also here), which will be placed at the Sun-Earth Lagrangian point L-1.
Why it is not placed near L-4 or L-5, since these are stable equilibrium point ...
7
votes
1answer
107 views
Is it possible for two stars to be in a horseshoe orbit around a much larger star?
I was reading about how Saturn has two moons, Janus and Epimetheus, that swap orbits once every four years. Could something like this happen on a much larger scale, but with stars instead of a planet ...
3
votes
1answer
138 views
Declination calculation
My task is to calculate current declination and right ascension for some artificial Earth satellite. For example ISS.
I am using latest TLE data for extracting keplerian orbital elements and then ...
0
votes
1answer
60 views
Distance from the sun can equal a hospitable planet?
It is said that planets are continuously moving away from the sun. At one time Mars was just the right distance to support life at least temperature wise?
Could Venus be far enough from the sun ...
2
votes
1answer
120 views
Is Earth losing orbit? [duplicate]
Is the Earth losing or gaining distance from the sun overall? Could asteroids over time add weight to the Earth and push it farther from the sun more than having a degrading orbit around the sun? Does ...
2
votes
1answer
96 views
Orbit of Mercury
As observed from the earth, the sun appears to move in an approximate circular orbit. For the motion of another planet like mercury as observed from the earth, would this be true? If not, why? What ...
2
votes
1answer
51 views
JPL Horizons - how to format TLIST input times for Email query?
I am trying to get a list of all of Mercury's Perihelia and Aphelia over a period of multiple decades. For each event I need X,Y,X and Vx,Vy,Vz data.
Knowing the time of the first event it is easy to ...
5
votes
1answer
265 views
Solar system data API?
I'm prototyping a real time solar system / milky way discovery app.
Could you please help me on:
-What is the best orbital data public API I can use?
-What is the standard numerical way to define ...
6
votes
3answers
151 views
Do changes in the orbit of the Earth contribute to global warming
"Researchers have largely put to rest a long debate on the underlying mechanism that has caused periodic ice ages on Earth for the past 2.5 million years – they are ultimately linked to slight shifts ...
6
votes
0answers
70 views
Error propagation methods for orbit parameters
Recently I've encountered an article in our local astronomical popularization magazine. It is about a well known task of Sgr A*-black hole's mass estimation. The article is written as a step by step ...
3
votes
1answer
622 views
Why does the moon not leave its orbit around the earth due to the gravitational force from the sun? [duplicate]
See additional information below added after the answer to the question.
When the moon is between the earth and the sun, the gravitational force on the moon from the sun is greater than the ...
2
votes
1answer
57 views
Is it possible for a moon to only be out at night?
(For the sake of this question, let's assume that all other factors are malleable.)
Essentially creating a permanent lunar eclipse, could a moon orbit around a planet so slowly that it is always ...
2
votes
1answer
34 views
How would tidal effects behave in this setup: An icy moon orbiting a gas giant, as the gas giant orbits a red dwarf? [closed]
Let me know if this is more appropriate for worldbuilding.
Essentially, I'd like to know how tidal effects would behave in these circumstances (if it's even stable):
An icy moon orbiting a gas ...
