Hm, alright, I began to suspect as much. Thanks!
Now that I've got you, in case you know your Lagrangian points... -- I'm having trouble understanding the stability of the stable Lagrangian points (L_4 and L_5); Wikipedia explains that if an object in the L_4 or L_5 of a planet is pushed closer...
I should have been more clear, my apologies (truly!): I've been asked specifically for planetary orbits; I know that for E>0 and E=0 the curve becomes a hyperbola and parabola, respectively, but that is hardly relevant for planets.
Homework Statement
I have been tasked with showing "how the mechanical energy of a planet determines the shape of its orbit", and I cannot for the life of me make sense of it. I've run into a formula, see below, but I'm not sure how to interpret it nor if it even applies in my case at all (as E...
Hi
I'm really at a loss: How should this formula be interpreted? Is e simply dependent on the specific mechanical energy of, say, a planet in orbit around the Sun as well as its angular momentum?
Hi,
Two questions.
1) I'm having trouble understanding the stability of the stable Lagrangian points (L_4 and L_5); Wikipedia explains that if an object in the L_4 or L_5 of a planet is pushed closer towards the common center of gravity of the Sun and the planet, the increased speed that comes...
Hm. So the force exerted on the Earth by the Sun would be considered negative as well, or? (Also, I don't understand what you mean by "so tends to reduce r").
I reckon I get the constants thing.
Homework Statement
Hi,
I've been tasked with showing that the length of vector F_gravity is inversely proportional with radius squared (i.e. |F_vector|=c/r^2) and is central, i.e. consistently directed toward the same point. Apparently, this is the same as (<=>) the acceleration of a particle...