Are Electron Orbitals Static or Dynamic?

[Ryan Reed]

Do the orbitals of electrons change positions within their energy level relative to the nucleus or are they statically "attached" to the nucleus? To try and put this into perspective, would the orbitals of the electrons be like nailing a balloon(orbital) straight to the ball(nucleus) or nailing it to a free axis attached to the ball? Or would it be neither?

 

[Dr. Courtney]

I think there's a free axis. The relative spins between the nuclear and orbital wave functions can be fixed, but the other degrees of freedom are not constrained.