Kepler's Laws Quiz

What is Kepler's second law?

A line from the planet to the sun sweeps out equal areas in equal amounts of time.

The image below shows Pluto in its counterclockwise orbit around the sun. Which of the following statements are true? A. Pluto is speeding up B. Pluto is slowing down C. Pluto travels at the same speed through its orbit D. Pluto's speed varies randomly and does not depend on its orbital position https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwj3oe2bxf3fAhViilQKHY-JCLAQjRx6BAgBEAU&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pas.rochester.edu%2F~blackman%2Fast104%2Fpfeatures.html&psig=AOvVaw1SlQ1H36yUOQVOGlpmojxr&ust=1548114248017141

Answer: A, according to Kepler's second law, a line from the planet to the sun sweeps out equal ares in equal amounts of time. As Pluto is traveling closer to the sun, the planet moves faster because as a mass is closer to a greater mass which is the planet to the sun, the gravitational force is greater.

Which objects have the most eccentric orbits? A. Uranus and Neptune B. Jupiter and Earth c. Saturn and Venus D. Mercury and Pluto

Answer: D, because Pluto and Mercury have the most circular shapes because they aren't stretched out like the other planets and flat=more eccentric since a circle has an eccentricity of 0 and a flat line is 1. A perfectly circular orbit has an eccentricity of zero; higher numbers indicate more elliptical orbits. Neptune, Venus, and Earth are the planets in our solar system with the least eccentric orbits. Pluto and Mercury are the planets in our solar system with the most eccentric orbits.

Halley's comet has an extremely elliptical orbit around the sun, with an eccentricity of 0.967. Its average orbital radius is 17.8 AU, and it was last observed in 1986. When will Halley's comet appear next?

Answer: P squared= A cubed P squared= (17.8)(17.8)(17.8) square root p squared=square root 5639.752 P=75.0982822706 P=75 1986+75=2061 years Halley's comet will appear in 2061 because according to Kepler's third law, P squared =A cubed where (p) is the period of a planets orbit squared and (a) is the average distance from the sun cubed.

The asteroid belt is a region between Mars and Jupiter that contains a multitude of large rocks and planetary fragments called asteroids. Most asteroids are about 3 AU from the sun. What is the best estimate of the orbital period of a typical asteroid?

Answer: P squared= A cubed P squared=(3)(3)(3) square root P squared=square root 27 P=5.19615 P=5.2 Earth Years According to Kepler's third Law., P squared =A cubed where (p) is the period of a planets orbit squared and (a) is the average distance from the sun cubed.

Four planets called A,B,C, and D have orbital periods as shown in the table below. Which planets is closer to the sun? Table: Planet A= orbital period 261 days, Planet B= orbital period 147 days, Planet C= orbital period 284 days, and Planet D= orbital period 317 days.

Answer: Planet B is closest to the sun because according to Kepler's third law, planet that has a shorter orbital period is closer to the sun because in Kepler's third law, it states P squared= A cubed where the planet's orbit is greater, the distance from the sun is farther and if the planet's orbit is smaller, the distance from the sun is closer.

What is Kepler's third law?

The (p) period of a planet's orbit squared is proportional to its (a) average distance from the sun cubed; P times P= A times A times A

What is Kepler's first law?

The orbit of a planet is an ellipse where one focus of the ellipse is the sun.

what does A cubed stand for?

the average distance from the sun cubed.

what does p squared stand for?

the period of a planet's orbit squared.