Elliptical orbits are oval-shaped paths of celestial bodies caused by varying attraction forces. There are four types of orbits, including elliptical, which is disrupted from a circular orbit. Johannes Kepler discovered the planets have elliptical orbits, enabling accurate predictions. The Earth’s orbit is nearly circular with small variations over time, affected by precession and tilt. Celestial objects in elliptical orbits move at different speeds at different points in their orbit.
The term “elliptical orbit” is used in astrophysics and astronomy to describe an oval-shaped path of a celestial body. The Earth, as well as all other planets in the Solar System, follow this type of orbit around the Sun. The shape is created by the varying attraction of forces, such as gravity, on two objects, such as the Sun and a planet.
According to experts, there are four types of orbital paths that a celestial body can follow. In a hyperbolic orbit, a body is pulled around another object, but retains enough energy to pull away from the object on a different path, forming a “U.” A spiral impact orbit occurs when a body is pulled in an inevitable spiral towards an object with greater pull until it collides with that object. Circular obits require a perfect balance of forces to allow a body to follow an exact circular path around another object. An elliptical orbit occurs when a circular orbit is disrupted by forces, such as the gravity of nearby objects, and follows a relatively stable, but non-circular path.
For thousands of years, scientists have believed that the planets of the Solar System follow circular orbits with the Sun at the center. In the early 17th century, German astronomer Johannes Kepler determined that this was not the case. According to Kepler’s work, the Earth and other planets have elliptical orbits, with the Sun serving as the focal point and not the exact center. Kepler’s discoveries enabled the development of accurate predictions of where each planet would be at any given moment, greatly advancing scientific understanding of the Solar System.
Although variations in the attraction forces are required to make a circular orbit elliptical, this amount can be extremely small. The Earth is known to have a nearly circular path, interrupted only by an incredibly small eccentricity. The exact elliptical path is known to vary over large periods of time, however, and over a period of approximately 100,000 years, the path will become more circular, then more oval. The orbital path is also affected by two other factors, called precession and tilt, which affect the alignment and position of the earth’s axis.
Celestial objects in an elliptical orbit, such as the Earth, move at different speeds at different points in their orbit. According to Kepler, an object in this type of orbit travels the same distance in the same time anywhere in its orbit. Because of the oval shape, this means that the body has to travel faster to cover the same distance at certain points in its orbit. For example, the Earth travels faster when it is closest to the Sun in January than when it is farthest away in July.
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