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What planets has the least distance between the two foci of its elliptical orbit?
Wiki User
∙ 10y ago
Pluto
Thanks for the answer! Unfortunately I meant to restrict the question to the 5 planets visible with the unaided-eye. Mercury, Venus, Mar, Jupiter & Saturn (excluding Earth). My mistake. Then again, perhaps its the planet furthest from the sun would have the greatest deviance from a perfect circular orbit. In that case, of the classical 5, it might be Saturn.
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Wiki User
∙ 10y agoPlanets don't have circular orbits; all orbits are ellipses. A circle has one center, but an ellipse has two focuses, or "foci". The further apart the foci, the greater the eccentricity, which is a measure of how far off circular the ellipse is.
Venus has the lowest eccentricity, at 0.007. Neptune is next with an eccentricity of 0.011. (Earth's orbit has an eccentricity of 0.017.)
So, Venus has the shortest focus-to-focus distance.
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Which planet has an orbit that is closest to a perfect circle?
The earth's orbit is almost a circle, but not quite. It is elliptical, but the difference between the closest and farthest points is less than 4%. This is such a small difference that it would look like a circle to most people. Astronomy books often show misleadingly exagerated elliptical orbits.
What planets do most known extrasolar planets least resemble?
They least resemble rocky planets like Venus Earth and Mars, particularly they least resemble planets that we would consider as possible life sustaining planets.
Is Saturn's orbit unusual?
Compared to most of the other planets, Mercury's orbit is much more of an elliptical (oval) form. Mercury's distance to the Sun varies from 46 million to 70 million kilometers from the Sun. Given its proximity to the Sun, its orbital speed is also higher, at nearly 48 kilometers per second. (Earth orbits at 30 km/sec and Neptune at only 5.4 km/sec.)
Do all outer planets have moons?
Yes, all the outer planets have at least a dozen moons.
What is the closest planet to Jupiter and how far is it?
The distance between the planets depends on their location relative to each other. Sometimes Mars, Sometimes Saturn. The least distance between Jupiter and Saturn is 3.5 AU and The least distance between Jupiter and Mars is 6.7 AU. Hence, Saturn's orbit is slightly closer than Mars' orbit. 1 AU is the distance between the Earth and the Sun. 1 Astronomical Unit = 149 598 000 kilometers
What are some charaeristics of all planets?
All planets have an elliptical orbit and the planets do not cross paths. They are all at least 15,000 miles around. They all have atmospheres. They all have their own gravity. They all have cores.
What are the planets in order from greatest to least in distance from the earth?
urn
Are there at least 15 billion elliptical galaxies in the universe?
There are at least 15 billion elliptical galaxies in the universe.
What are the strange things about the orbit of Pluto?
The strange things are :1) Its orbit is inclined at a large angle to the plane that the major planets orbit in. There are several other small planetoids (plutoids) with similarly inclined orbits.2) There is a very large difference between its least and greatest distance from the Sun. This is referred to as a highly eccentric or highly elliptic orbit.
Are the 8 planets major planets?
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, in order from least to greatest in distance from the sun.
Which galaxy is the least common elliptical irregular or spiral galaxy?
I think the least common is elliptical or irregular..
What planet has the least distance between the two Foci of its elliptical orbit?
Planets don't have circular orbits; all orbits are ellipses. A circle has one center, but an ellipse has two focuses, or "foci". The further apart the foci, the greater the eccentricity, which is a measure of how far off circular the ellipse is. Venus has the lowest eccentricity, at 0.007. Neptune is next with an eccentricity of 0.011. (Earth's orbit has an eccentricity of 0.017.) So, Venus has the shortest focus-to-focus distance.
Where is the distance between the continents of Europe and Africa the least?
The least distance is across the Strait of Gibraltar.
Where are the gas planets and where are they located?
The gas planets, in our solar system at least, are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, in order from least to greatest distance from the Sun. They are all found beyond the Asteroid Belt. The gas planets, or "Gas Giants" if you will, are larger and less dense than the other planets. They all have rings and several moons.
What is the term for the greatest distance between two planets?
Two planets are at their greatest separation when they are on opposite sides of the Sun. When a planet is at its greatest separation from the Earth the planet is said to be at superior conjunction. It cannot be seen until it has separated out from the Sun, which usually takes a few weeks at least.
What are planets in order from greatest to least in distance from the sun?
Neptune, Uranus, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus, and Mercury
Which planet has an orbit that is closest to a perfect circle?
The earth's orbit is almost a circle, but not quite. It is elliptical, but the difference between the closest and farthest points is less than 4%. This is such a small difference that it would look like a circle to most people. Astronomy books often show misleadingly exagerated elliptical orbits.
