Ellipse application, easy ellipse assignment = easy money  

Assignment: Ellipse Application
The planets in our solar system do not travel in circular orbits. Rather, their orbits are elliptical in
shape with the Sun located at one of the foci of the ellipse. The major axis of the elliptical orbit
lies along the x-axis.
The perihelion is the closest a planet comes to the Sun.
The aphelion is the planet’s furthest distance from the Sun.
A planet’s mean distance from the Sun is equal to one-half of the length of the major axis of the
ellipse, as shown in the figure below.
In the sketch below, elliptical orbit is exaggerated to demonstrate the difference between the
perihelion and the aphelion. In reality, the orbit is much more circular. mean distance Perihelion SUN Aphelion major axis
center Think about the elliptical orbit of the planet Mercury. The closest that Mercury comes to the Sun is
about 46 million miles, while the farthest away is about 70 million miles.
Use this information and the standard equation for an ellipse to solve each problem. Show all
work leading to your answer. Write explanations for your answers using complete sentences.
For all calculations use “million miles.” For example, write “46 million miles” rather than
“46,000,000.” © K12 Inc. 1. What are the aphelion and perihelion of Mercury? Explain what each of these measurements
means. 2. The sum of the aphelion and perihelion is equal to the length of the major axis of the elliptical
orbit. Find the approximate length of Mercury’s major axis. 3. Use the length you calculated for the major axis to find Mercury’s mean distance from the Sun. x2 y 2
+
= 1 . The orbit for Mercury
a2 b2
can be plotted on the coordinate plane with the center at the origin and the Sun located at one
focus. Use this information and the Mercury’s calculated mean distance from the Sun to find the
value of a. Express your answer in millions of miles.
4. The equation for an ellipse with a horizontal major axis is © K12 Inc. 5. To write an equation for the elliptical orbit of Mercury, it is necessary to find the value of b. The
equation b 2 = a 2 − c 2 can be used to find the value of b. Find the value of b rounded to the
nearest million miles. (Hint: c is equal to the coordinate of the focus, which is the location of the
Sun. To find the Sun’s location, subtract Mercury’s perihelion from its mean distance from the
Sun). Explain your steps. 6. Use the approximate values you calculated for a and b to write the equation for Mercury’s
elliptical orbit. 7. Even though planetary orbits are elliptical, some are nearly circular. What does the equation
you wrote tell you about the shape of Mercury’s orbit? © K12 Inc.

• 1492578519-Ellippse App.pdf

ComputerScienceExpert

(11)

Status NEW Posted 19 Apr 2017 04:04 AM My Price 8.00

-----------

Attachments

file 1492578520-Solutions file 2.docx preview (51 words )

H-----------ell-----------o S-----------ir/-----------Mad-----------am ----------- Th-----------ank----------- yo-----------u f-----------or -----------you-----------r i-----------nte-----------res-----------t a-----------nd -----------buy-----------ing----------- my----------- po-----------ste-----------d s-----------olu-----------tio-----------n. -----------Ple-----------ase----------- pi-----------ng -----------me -----------on -----------cha-----------t I----------- am----------- on-----------lin-----------e o-----------r i-----------nbo-----------x m-----------e a----------- me-----------ssa-----------ge -----------I w-----------ill----------- be----------- qu-----------ick-----------ly -----------onl-----------ine----------- an-----------d g-----------ive----------- yo-----------u e-----------xac-----------t f-----------ile----------- an-----------d t-----------he -----------sam-----------e f-----------ile----------- is----------- al-----------so -----------sen-----------t t-----------o y-----------our----------- em-----------ail----------- th-----------at -----------is -----------reg-----------ist-----------ere-----------d o-----------n -----------THI-----------S W-----------EBS-----------ITE-----------. ----------- Th-----------ank----------- yo-----------u -----------

Not Rated(0)

• Buy Answer