Orbits and eccentricity

Front

What is perihelion in relation to the sun?

Back

Perihelion is the closest point of an orbiting body to the sun.

Front

What is aphelion in relation to the sun?

Back

Aphelion is the furthest point of an orbiting body from the sun.

Front

How does the eccentricity of a comet's orbit compare to that of Earth's orbit?

Back

The comet's orbit has more eccentricity compared to Earth's orbit.

Front

What condition would produce an orbit with greater eccentricity?

Back

An increase in the distance between the two foci of the orbit will produce greater eccentricity.

Front

What happens to the eccentricity (e) as the distance between the focus points increases?

Back

The eccentricity (e) gets bigger/increases as the distance between the focus points increases.

Front

Define eccentricity in the context of orbits.

Back

Eccentricity is a measure of how much an orbit deviates from being circular; it ranges from 0 (circular) to 1 (parabolic).

Front

What is the shape of an elliptical orbit?

Back

An elliptical orbit is oval-shaped, with two foci.

Front

What are the two foci in an elliptical orbit?

Back

The two foci in an elliptical orbit are typically the sun and another point in space.

Front

How does eccentricity affect the speed of an orbiting body?

Back

An orbiting body moves faster when it is closer to the sun (perihelion) and slower when it is further away (aphelion).

Front

What is the relationship between the semi-major axis and eccentricity in an orbit?

Back

The semi-major axis is the longest diameter of an ellipse, and eccentricity describes how stretched out the ellipse is.