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Kepler’s Laws

of Planetary Motion
A bit of History
• Tycho Brahe – Danish Astronomer 1547
• He was given an island in the North
Sea to set up an observatory. Tycho
observed the stars for 20 years and
collected data.

• The man with the gold replacement nose!


Johannes Kepler
Polish Astronomer
born 1571

Interpreted Brahe’s
data.
Kepler’s Laws
• 1st Law - All objects in the solar system
travel in elliptical paths.
• An ellipse has two focal points.
• The sun is at one focal point.
• The eccentricity of an ellipse is a ratio
of the two major axes.
Kepler’s Laws
• 2nd Law – All
objects sweep out
equal areas in
equal times.
• S = Sun is at one
of the focal points.
Kepler’s Laws
• 2nd Law –
• Area of triangle
ASB(green)
equals
area of triangle
CSD(blue)
This is true because
of the conservation
of angular
momentum.
Kepler’s Laws
• Point B is summer
for New York
• Point D is winter for
New York
• Is the speed of the
Earth constant?
• When is the Earth
moving fastest in its
orbit around the sun?
Kepler’s Laws
• 3rd Law - R2/T3 is a constant for
every object in the solar system
moving around the sun.
• This is true because of Newton’s
2nd Law of motion
• F = G M1M2/r2 = M2v2
Sir Isaac Newton
• Describes why the
planets behave the
way they do –
Gravity – It’s
everywhere! Not
just on the Earth!
Gravitation
• What variables affect
the gravitational
attraction between two
objects.
F
1) Mass of object #1
Earth
This is a direct and linear M
relationship. earth
Gravitation

2) Mass of object #2
You F
This is a direct and
linear relationship.

M
you
Gravitation

• 3) Distance
between the centers
of the two F
objects - r.
This is an inverse
square relationship.
r
Newton’s Law of Gravitational
Attraction
• F = G M1M2/r2

• G = Universal Gravitational
Constant =
6.7 x 10 N-m /kg
-11 2 2
Newton’s Law of Universal
Gravitation
• It is only an attractive force.
• It acts at a distance.
• It is an inverse square law.
• It describes the gravitational
force that exists between all
bodies.
Force of Attraction
• What is the force
of attraction
between a 50 Kg
girl and a 70 Kg
boy standing 1
meter apart?
Force of Attraction

• F = G M1M2/r2
• M = 50 Kg
• M = 70 Kg
• r=1m
• G = 6.7 x 10-11
• F=?
The Cavendish Experiment -1798
• Proves that even
small objects have
gravitational
attraction for each
other.
Newton’s 2nd Law
• F = m2a = G MeM2/r2
So
a = G Me/r2

This is the acceleration due to gravity


on a planet with mass - Me and a
radius of r.
Distance from the Local g Local Weight
Earth’s Center m/s/s w = mg

½ Re 39.2 2800 N

1 Re 9.8 700 N

2 Re 9.8/4 = 2.45 172 N

3 Re 9.8/9 = 1.1 77 N

4 Re 9.8/16 = 0.61 43 N
Suddenly, through forces not yet fully understood,
Darren Belsky’s apartment became the center of a
new black hole.

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