Questions tagged [orbital-elements]
Questions about the parameters needed to specify the characteristics of an orbit.
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Sensitivity of calculated orbital elements to observational errors
These days, we have some very precise ways of making measurements, but I'm sure it wasn't so in Kepler's day. So I am wondering how astronomers of that time could make such accurate determinations of ...
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Orbital Elements Transformations
I'm a third year undergrad, and for the project I'm doing this summer, I need to figure out the Earth's position and velocity from the moon's point of view. From the reading I've done, it seems like ...
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Why planet's orbit is not perpendicular or random ?
Why planet's orbit is not perpendicular or random ? It always seems each planet is revolving on the same geometric-plane around the star.
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Convert orbital elements to positions and velocities
I've written a quick and dirty n-body simulator, but currently it requires initial positions and velocities. I've been looking for a way to convert Keplerian orbital elements to positions and ...
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Calculate apsides without knowing eccentricity
How would one go about determining the apsides of an orbit, knowing only the current distance between the 2 bodies, the orbital velocity, and the period? Every formula I've seen requires eccentricity, ...