The planet's progress appears to slow down, or reverse its direction altogether so that it appears to move westward with respect to the stars over a period of many nights. It is important to note that this aberration of motion is an illusion - the planet in question has not changed its orbit in any way. Because of the relative motions among the observed planet and Earth, the observer on Earth sees an illusion, and from the observer's perspective, the planet appears to deviate from its normal orbit.
The apparent westward movement of a planet is known as retrograde motion. This phenomenon occurs when a superior planet passes Earth in its orbit, making it appear to move backward in the sky relative to the stars.
The "apparent" reverse or backwards motion of a planet as observed from Earth. The innermost planets appear to have a retrograde motion when viewed from Earth.
Retrograde Motion
Retrograde Motion
This motion is called retrograde motion. It occurs when a planet's motion in its orbit appears to reverse due to differences in orbital speeds and distances from Earth.
Retrograde motion happens when the Earth overtakes an outer planet in its orbit. It happens around the date of Opposition when the planet is opposite the Sun in the sky. Usually planets travel from west to east along the ecliptic, but during retrograde motion they travel backwards, from east to west,.
That is called 'apparent retrograde motion'.See the related link listed belowfor more information.
Retrograde motion is motion in the opposite direction. In the case of celestial bodies, such motion may be real, defined by the inherent rotation or orbit of the body, or apparent, as seen in the skies from Earth.
A planet is said to be in retrograde motion when its apparent motion - the motion as seen by us, against the background stars - is from east to west.Planets spend more time in prograde motion, from west to east. The apparent movement of Sun and Moon against the background stars is also from west to east. Not to be confused with the daily motion, due to Earth's rotation.
Neptune has a moon named Triton that exhibits retrograde motion. Retrograde motion is when a moon orbits its planet in the opposite direction of the planet's rotation.
As of October 2021, the outer planets Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are retrograde. Retrograde motion is an apparent backward motion of a planet as seen from Earth, and it can affect us by prompting introspection and reevaluation in the areas of life governed by the planet.
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