What would happen if our solar system had three suns? Or the Earth had two moons? You can find out all these and more with this lesson on orbital mechanics. Instead of waiting until you hit college, we thought we’d throw some university-level physics at you… without the hard math.
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To get you experienced with the force of gravity without getting lost in the math, there’s an excellent computer program that allows you to see how multi-object systems interact. Most textbooks are limited to the interaction between a very large object, like the Earth, and much smaller objects that are very close to it, like the Moon. This seriously cuts out most of the interesting solar systems that are out there in the real universe.
The University of Colorado at Boulder designed a great system to do the hard math for you. Don’t be fooled by the simplistic appearance – the physics behind the simulation is rock-solid… meaning that the results you get are exactly what scientists would predict to happen.
How do I design a solar system?
Go to the My Solar System simulation on the PhET website and carefully follow the instructions for each activity. Answer the questions and record your results before going on to the next activity. Click here to RUN the simulation on the internet.
Here’s what you should see and do:
Download Student Worksheet & Exercises
Exercises:
- What effect does changing the mass of orbiting planet have on the diameter of the orbit?
- What effect does changing the speed have on a planet’s orbit?
- What happens to the planet’s orbit when you increase the initial distance between the planet and the Sun?
- Find the mass values needed for a stable orbit. Circle the values on the table that make a stable orbit.
- Why don’t a feather and a brick hit the ground at the same time?
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