Energy
The specific orbital energy is negative, and
Thus the virial theorem applies even without taking a time-average:
- the kinetic energy of the system is equal to the absolute value of the total energy
- the potential energy of the system is equal to twice the total energy
The escape velocity from any distance is √2 times the speed in a circular orbit at that distance: the kinetic energy is twice as much, hence the total energy is zero.
Read more about this topic: Circular Orbit
Famous quotes containing the word energy:
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—Amy Laura Dombro (20th century)
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—Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924)
“Violence among young people ... is an aspect of their desire to create. They don’t know how to use their energy creatively so they do the opposite and destroy.”
—Anthony Burgess (b. 1917)