8

LECTURE 8

SNS 311 – L6- L7

Osama M. Shalabiea
25.12-2021
 ” (t) is directly proportional to θ in
Give reason

a circular orbit.
Because the circle is symmetric about any diameter, the apse line—and
therefore the periapsis—can be chosen arbitrarily (Fig. 1).
We cannot solve this transcendental equation directly for E.
(iterative NEWTON method)
 Very simple

BUT

Fig. Plot of Kepler’s equation for an elliptical orbit

If time is the given variable, then we must solve the cubic equation
which has but one real root, namely,
Therefore, Eq. (3.***) may be written as Mp is dimensionless, and it may be
thought of as the “mean anomaly” for the parabola. Eq. (3.**) is plotted in Fig.
Eq. (3.**) is also known as Barker’s equation, after Thomas Barker (1722–1809),
a British meteorologist.
 𝒉𝟑
𝒕 = 𝟐 𝑴𝑷
𝝁
Same strategy
8
 LECTURE 8

SNS 311 – L6- L7

revision

Osama M. Shalabiea
25.12-2021
✓ The course up to now has been confined to two dimensions
(i.e., to the plane of the orbits themselves).

✓ In this Lecture we will explore

the means of describing orbits in three-dimensional space,
which is the setting for real missions and orbital maneuvers.

✓ Our focus will be on the orbits of earth satellites

The coordinate system used to describe earth orbits in three dimensions is
defined in terms of earth’s equatorial plane, the ecliptic plane, and the earth’s
axis of rotation. The ecliptic is the plane of the earth’s orbit around the sun, as
illustrated in the following Fig’s

The earth’s axis of rotation is not perpendicular to the ecliptic.

It is tilted away by an angle known as the obliquity of the ecliptic, ε
Axial tilt (obliquity). For the earth, ε is approximately 23.4°.
Cycles that describe the collective effects of changes in
the Earth's movements on its climate over thousands of years

The term is named for Serbian geophysicist and astronomer Milutin Milanković. In
the 1920s, he hypothesized that variations in eccentricity, axial tilt,
and precession resulted in cyclical variation in the solar radiation reaching the
Earth, and that this orbital forcing strongly influenced the Earth's climatic patterns.
The angle of the Earth's axial tilt with respect to the
orbital plane (the obliquity of the ecliptic) varies
between 22.1° and 24.5°, over a cycle of about
41,000 years. The current tilt is 23.44°, roughly
halfway between its extreme values.

Axial precession
Axial precession is the trend in the
direction of the Earth's axis of rotation
relative to the fixed stars, with a period of
25,771.5 years.

22.1–24.5° range of Earth's obliquity

Axial precession
Axial precession is the trend in the
direction of the Earth's axis of rotation
relative to the fixed stars, with a period
of 25,771.5 years.

Also known as the precession of the

equinoxes, this motion means that
eventually Polaris will no longer be the
north pole star.
Axial precessional movement
Tabernas Desert, Spain: Cycles can be observed in the colouration and
resistance of different sediment strata
The Earth's orbit varies between nearly circular and
mildly elliptical (its eccentricity varies). When the orbit is
more elongated, there is more variation in the distance
between the Earth and the Sun, and in the amount of solar
radiation, at different times in the year. In addition, the
rotational tilt of the Earth (its obliquity) changes slightly. A
greater tilt makes the seasons more extreme. Finally, the
direction in the fixed stars pointed to by the Earth's axis
changes (axial precession), while the Earth's elliptical orbit
around the Sun rotates (apsidal precession). The combined
effect of precession with eccentricity is that proximity to the
Sun occurs during different astronomical seasons.[2]
 Orbital inclination

The inclination of Earth's orbit drifts up and down

relative to its present orbit. This three-dimensional
movement is known as "precession of the ecliptic" or
"planetary precession". Earth's current inclination
relative to the invariable plane (the plane that
represents the angular momentum of the Solar System—
approximately the orbital plane of Jupiter) is 1.57°
The earth’s orbit around the sun, viewed from above the ecliptic plane, showing
the change of seasons in the northern hemisphere.
 For many practical purposes, the vernal
equinox line may be considered fixed in space.

However, it actually rotates slowly because the earth’s tilted spin axis processes westward around the
normal to the ecliptic at the rate of about 1.4° per century. This slow precession is due primarily to the
action of the sun and the moon on the nonspherical distribution of mass within the earth.
The celestial sphere,
with grid lines of right
ascension (RA or α) is
measured along the
celestial equator in
degrees east

and
Declination
Declination (Dec or δ)
A view of the sky above the eastern horizon from 0° longitude
on the equator at 9 a.m. local time, March 20, 2004
From this we see that the declination is obtained as δ = sin-1 (n).
There is no quadrant ambiguity since, by definition, the declination lies between 90° and +90°, which
is precisely the range of the principal values of the arcsine function.
It follows that cosδ cannot be negative.
Although the position vector furnishes the right ascension and declination, the right
ascension and declination alone do not furnish r. For that we need the distance r to
obtain the position vector from Eq.
 End

Thanks For your attention

ALL THE BEST 2022

SNS 311 –done

Osama M. Shalabiea
25-12-2021