Physics

Name:

Construct Planetary Orbits Around the Sun

Spring 2013

The eccentricity of an ellipse is a measure of its flatness. Numerically, it is the distance between the foci divided by the length of the major axis. The following is a series of ellipses having the same major axis but different eccentricities:

As the eccentricity approaches 1, the ellipse approaches a straight line. As the eccentricity approaches 0, the foci come closer together and the ellipse becomes more circular. A circle has an eccentricity of zero. Kepler's second law states that a line from the planet to the Sun sweeps over equal areas in equal amounts of time. These areas in the ellipse are called sectors. In the following diagram, as the planet moves from point A to point B along its orbit, a long, skinny sector is created.

If we wanted to create a sector of equal area at points closer to the Sun (points C and D), the result is a short, fat sector. According to Kepler, the time it takes for the planet to get from A to B is equal to the time it takes the planet to get from C to D. This means that a planet orbits slower as it moves further from the Sun (conservation of angular momentum). Kepler's third law deals with the length of time a planet takes to orbit the Sun, called the period of revolution. The law states that the square of the period of revolution is proportional to the cube of the planet's average distance to the sun: T (in years) =a (in AU). Because of the way a planet moves along its orbit, its average distance from the Sun is half of the long diameter of the elliptical orbit (the semimajor axis.) The period, T, is measured in years and the semimajor axis, a, is measured in astronomical units (AU), the average distance from the Earth to the Sun. An example for using this formula would be to calculate how long it takes the near-Earth asteroid called Eros to orbit the Sun. The closest (perihelion) distance to the Sun that Eros orbits is 1.13 AU, and the farthest (aphelion) away from the Sun that it orbits is 1.78 AU. So, the average distance from Eros to the Sun, the semimajor axis, is (1.13 + 1.78)/2 = 1.46 AU. Substituting this in for a in the formula P = a and solving for P we see that it takes Eros about 1.76 years to orbit the Sun.
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Physics

Construct Planetary Orbits Around the Sun

Spring 2013

Physics
Materials:

Construct Planetary Orbits Around the Sun

Spring 2013

Thumbtacks or pins, string, cardboard (21.5 cm x 28 cm), metric ruler, pencil, paper, calculator, and Java Applet. Purpose: In this activity student will learn how to make an ellipse using string and how varying the length of the string alters the shape of the ellipse. Students will also learn how characteristics of an ellipse relate to the orbits of the planets. Procedure: Part A 1. Place a blank sheet of paper on top of the cardboard and place two thumbtacks or pins about 3 cm apart. 2. Tie the string into a circle with a circumference of 15 to 20 cm. Loop the string around the thumbtacks. With someone holding the tacks or pins, place a pencil inside the loop and pull it taut. 3. Move the pen or pencil around the tacks, keeping the string taut, until you have completed a smooth, closed curve or an ellipse. 4. Repeat Steps 1 though 3 several times. First vary the distance between the tacks and then vary the circumference of the string. However, change only one of these each time. Note the effect on the size and shape of the ellipse with each of these changes. 5. Orbits are usually described in terms of eccentricity (e) The eccentricity of any ellipse is determined by dividing the distance ( d ) between the foci or tacks by the length of the major axis (L). Measure and record (d) and (L) for each ellipse you created. 6. Calculate and record the eccentricity of the ellipses that you constructed.

7.

Attach sketches

Constructed ellipse #1 #2 #3

d (cm)

L (cm)

e (d/L)

Physics
Part B

Construct Planetary Orbits Around the Sun

Spring 2013

1. Use Java applet, i.e. on-line http://www.walter-fendt.de/ph14e/keplerlaw2.htm Select proper eccentricity Stop/pause to find perihelion and aphelion Directly measure L and d on the screen to determine e.
Perihelion Aphelion

Constructed ellipse Earth's orbit Mercury's orbit Pluto's orbit

a (avg.)

Measured e (d/L)

e from chart

Planet Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto

Eccentricity 0.21 0.01 0.02 0.09 0.05 0.06 0.05 0.01 0.25

Physics

Construct Planetary Orbits Around the Sun

Spring 2013

True/False Indicate whether the statement is true or false. ____ ____ ____ ____ 1. Ellipses have only one focus. 2. A circular orbit has neither a perihelion nor an aphelion. 3. Kepler suggested that planets move at different speeds at different points in their orbit. 4. According to Keplers third law, the cube of the average distance of a planet from the sun is always proportional to the square of the planets orbit period. 5. The square of a planets orbit period measured in earth years is equal to the cube of the planets distance from the sun measured in AUs. 6. A planets orbit period measured in years is equal to its distance from the sun measured in AUs. 7. The point at which an orbit comes closest to the sun is called perihelion.

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Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. ____ 8. Keplers first law states that a. the orbits of the planets are elliptical. b. the speed of a planets orbit varies depending on which part of the ellipse it is occupying. c. the square of the ratio of the periods of any two planets revolving around the Sun is equal to the cube of the ratio of their average distance from the Sun. d. objects attract other objects with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. 9. Keplers second law states that a. the orbits of the planets are elliptical. b. the speed of a planets orbit varies depending on which part of the ellipse it is occupying. c. the square of the ratio of the periods of any two planets revolving around the Sun is equal to the cube of the ratio of their average distance from the Sun. d. objects attract other objects with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. 10. Keplers third law states that a. the orbits of the planets are elliptical. b. the speed of a planets orbit varies depending on which part of the ellipse it is occupying. c. the square of the ratio of the periods of any two planets revolving around the Sun is equal to the cube of the ratio of their average distance from the Sun. d. objects attract other objects with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. 11. A planet moving in an elliptical orbit moves a. slower when it is closer to the Sun. b. faster when it is farther away from the Sun. c. slower when it is farther away from the Sun. d. faster when it is closer to the Sun. e. both c and d.

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Physics

Construct Planetary Orbits Around the Sun

Spring 2013

____ 12. Which of the following equations expresses Newtons law of universal gravitation? a. c. b. d.

____ 13. In the figure above, according to Keplers laws of planetary motion,
a. b. A =A . t > t . c. d. if t = t , then the orbit is circular. if t = t , then A = A .

____ 14. In the diagram above, perihelion is located at the point labeled a. 1. c. 3. b. 2. d. 4.

Physics

Construct Planetary Orbits Around the Sun

Average distance from sun (106 km) 57.9 108.2 149.6 227.9 778.3 1,427 2,871 4,497 5,914 Diameter (km) 4,879 12,104 12,756 6,794 142,984 120,536 51,118 49,528 2,390 Rate of rotation (Earth time) 59 d 243 d 23 hr 56 min 24 hr 37 min 9 hr 50 min 10 hr 30 min 17 hr 14 min 16 hr 07 min 6.4 d

Spring 2013

Planet 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

____ 15. According to Keplers third law, which planet in the table above has the longest orbit period? a. 1 c. 5 b. 2 d. 9 ____ 16. Which planet in the table above represents Jupiter? a. 4 c. 6 b. 5 d. 7 ____ 17. Based on Keplers third law, the orbit period of an object four astronomical units from the sun would be a. 4 years. c. 16 years. b. 8 years. d. 32 years. ____ 18. Keplers first law states that planets orbit the sun in paths called a. circles. c. epicycles. b. periods. d. ellipses. ____ 19. One astronomical unit is equal to the distance between the earth and a. Mercury. c. Pluto. b. the moon. d. the sun. ____ 20. The planets are kept in orbit by the suns a. inertia. b. magnetism. c. gravity. d. period.