Computing Position As A Function of Time
Kepler used his two first laws for computing the position of a planet as a function of time. His method involves the solution of a transcendental equation called Kepler's equation.
The procedure for calculating the heliocentric polar coordinates (r,θ) to a planetary position as a function of the time t since perihelion, and the mean motion n = 2π/P, is the following four steps.
- 1. Compute the mean anomaly
- 2. Compute the eccentric anomaly E by solving Kepler's equation:
- 3. Compute the true anomaly θ by the equation:
- 4. Compute the heliocentric distance r from the first law:
The important special case of circular orbit, ε = 0, gives simply θ = E = M. Because the uniform circular motion was considered to be normal, a deviation from this motion was considered an anomaly.
The proof of this procedure is shown below.
Read more about this topic: Kepler's Laws Of Planetary Motion
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