WHAT KEEPS

PLANETS IN
ELLIPTICAL
ORBITS?
INTRODUCTION

• A common misconception about the movement of planets is that they move in perfect circular
orbits around their stars. However, in reality, things are not that simple, and a more accurate
depiction of the movement of planets can be seen in the diagram. Although this can occur, it is
extremely rare, and the planets in our solar system don’t really revolve around in perfect circular
orbits. Instead, they orbit the sun in shape called an ellipse, which is essentially a stretched
circle. Throughout this presentation, you will understand why planets orbit in this way, you will
learn about three laws of planetary motion, and the person who discovered them, Johannes
Kepler.
 WHY DO PLANETS REVOLVE AROUND STARS
IN ELLIPTICAL ORBITS?

• For a perfectly circular orbit, the planet would need to have mass,
velocity and a distance from the star that exactly matches the
gravitational influence of that star. Any slight change of these three
variables would derail the planet from the perfect circular orbit. For
example, if the mass of the star or the planet changes, it would disturb
the delicate balance of these variables. Therefore, it is extremely rare for
planets do have perfect circular orbits.
JOHANNES KEPLER

• Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) was a German astronomer who

discovered 3 laws of planetary motion.He discovered that
planets actually moved in elliptical orbits, rather than circles,
around the sun while trying to calculate the orbit of Mars in
1605. Additionally, from this he also realized that planets
move faster when they are closer to the sun and slower when
further away. His discoveries tranformed the Sun-centred
system of Nicoulas Copernicus into a dynamic universe, where
the sun was causing the planets to orbit it in non-circular
orbits. His discoveries and notion of a physical astronomy that
caused new ways of thinking for other scientists at the time,
such as Isaac Newton.
KEPLER’S FIRST LAW (THE LAW OF
ELLIPSES)
Kepler's first law states that "each planet's orbit about the Sun is an ellipse where the center of the sun is
 located at one focus of the orbital ellipse meaning that the sun is at one focus. The planet follows the ellipse in
its orbit as the distance of the planet and the sun is constantly changing since the planet goes around its orbit".
In simple terms, the planets move around the Sun in elliptical orbits where an ellipse shape is formed that
resembles a flattened circle and an ellipse has two focus points called foci, and the sun is at one of these points.
The measure of how elliptical a planet is called eccentricity. This usually ranges from 0 to 1 where, where 0 is a
perfect circle and 1 is another shaped called a parabola. For example, earth’s eccentricity is 0.01671 which
means its not very elliptical. If a planet’s orbit exceed an eccentricity of 1, it is no longer confined to that planet.

The understanding of this law in the field of astronomy is extremely important for us understanding how the
space and the universe around us functions. This is because, the first law of Kepler's law helped numerous
scientists in the past and present to understand the structure of the Universe and helped develop the theory of
the Copernician universe. Kepler than using this law stated that "a force emanating from the sun causes the
motion of the six planets. "
KEPLER’S FIRST LAW (CONTINUED)
 KEPLER’S SECOND LAW (THE LAW OF EQUAL
AREAS)
Kepler's second law states that a planet moves in its ellipse so that the line between it and the Sun placed
at a focus sweeps out equal areas in equal times. This law in Astronomy focuses on the planetary motion
that describes the speed of a planet traveling in an elliptical orbit around the Sun. The definition found by
Kepler in 1609 is that "a line between the Sun and the planet sweeps equal areas in equal times. So,
according to this definition, it is evident that the speed of the planet increases as it gets closer to the Sun
and it decreases as it gets further away from the sun the Sun. This is because, the time taken (seconds) for
any planet to move a distance of position a to b sweeping out area, is equal to the distance of position
from c to d sweeping out area where A1=A2.

Just like the first law, the understanding of Keplers second law in the field of astronomy is extremely
important for us understanding how the space and the universe around us functions. Kepler used this law
to examine Planets that are farther away from the sun and found out that they also have eliptical orbits.
This law helps astronomers understand that when a Planet is closer to the sun, its faster.
KEPLER’S SECOND LAW (CONTINUED)
 KEPLER'S THIRD LAW (THE LAW OF
HARMONIES)
• Kepler's third law states that "the square of the orbital period of a planet is directly proportional to the cube of the
semi-major axis of its orbit (the semi-major axis of the circular orbit is the radius or half the diameter) of that
respective orbit. In simple terms, Kepler's third law focuses on if we square the year/age of each planet and divide it by
the cube of its distance from the sun, we get the same value for every single Planet in the Solar system. This law by
Kepler could be represented using the formula T2/ R3 cubed = k where the value of K is constant.

• Astronomers use this law in the field of astronomy to get an accurate understanding of the period and the distance for
a Planets orbits to the Sun. Also, this law is used to get a coordinate and a specific time for the positions of
the asteroids that orbit the Sun. These coordinates and time (s) on the solar system helps astronomers explore other
planets taht are further away from the sun.
KEPLERS THIRD LAW (CONTINUED)
KEPLER’S LAWS SUMMARRY
VIDEO ABOUT KEPLER'S LAWS
CONCLUSION
To conclude,
• Planets do not usually orbit their star in perfect circles, and instead their orbits are elliptical.
• An ellipse is a stretched version of a circle.
• How elliptical an orbit is, is measure in eccentricity.
• There are three laws which govern the movement of the planets called Kepler’s laws. The law of ellipses, the
law of equal areas and the law of harmonies.
• The person who discovered these Laws is Johannes Kepler who lived between 1571 and 1630, and was a
german astronomer who made great contributions to astrohpyscics and led to new way of thinking which
inspired others.
• Planets orbit elliptically since the balance between the gravitation influence and other variables such as mass,
velocity and distance from the star is not complete.
QUIZ

To test your knowledge on this topic, here is a quiz:

• True or false, planets orbit in complete circles around a star?
• Who discovered the three laws of planetary motion? (Full
name)
• Can you briefly describe Kepler’s First law?
• Can you briefly describe Kepler’s Second law?
• Can you briefly describe Kepler’s Third law?
• What is the measurement for how elliptical a planet’s orbit is
called?
• Why do planets orbit their stars in elliptical orbits?
REFERENCES

• Johannes Kepler | Biography, Discoveries, & Facts (2020). Available at:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Johannes-Kepler (Accessed: 27 January 2021).
• A Brief Biography of Johannes Kepler (2021). Available at: http://www.localhistories.org/kepler.html
(Accessed: 27 January 2021).