Keppler’s law

Keppler got to work with Tycho Brahe after he was banished from his homeland. Tycho was famous for his accuracy astronomy observations. When he met Keppler, he allocated him the role to study planet Mars since it could not be explained by any of the theories that were known at the time. Tycho Brahe thought that his involving Keppler in a complex project would give him enough time to complete his theory which implied that the universe was made of planets which all rotated around the earth.  His study with the planet however worked to his advantage as he discovered that the orbits of planets are elliptical and not circular as formerly believed. The advantage of using planet Mars was the fact that it is the most elliptical planet and hence it was easier to observe (NASA).

Keppler’s laws are described using the three properties of an ellipse. The first property of an ellipse is that it has two points known as foci. The sum of the distances from any point on the ellipse is always equal. The second property is that the eccentricity of a circle, otherwise known as the flatness, ranges from zero to one. The third property is that it has a major and a minor axis which are the longest and shortest distances between the walls of an ellipse. Keppler’s first law states that the sun is always located at one of the foci of its orbit. The second is illustrated using the second property of an ellipse. He also noted the change in the distances from the sun to the planets as it continues its revolution around the sun. The second property is that the eccentricity of a circle, otherwise known as the flatness, ranges from zero to one. The second law states that the imaginary line that connects the sun to the planet always sweeps equal areas over equal intervals of time. This, the presentation states, often necessitates the planet to vary its velocity at different points on the orbit. Finally, the presentation illustrates the third law using the distances from the sun to the planets and relates it to the time required to make one complete revolution (NASA).

The video helps me understand Keppler’s law by using simpler language to explain. It also uses illustrations that assist in comprehending the situations. The video also relates information that is easier to understand like the distance from properties of the ellipse to explain more complex matters.

References

NASA,. Keppler’s Laws. 2014. Web. 2 Jul. 2014. Retrieved from: https://archive.org/details/kepler_full_cc