Suppose that two asteroids are orbiting the Sun on nearly identical orbits, and they happen to pass close enough to each other to have their orbits altered by this gravitational encounter. If one of the asteroids ends up moving to an orbit that is closer to the Sun, what happens to the other asteroid?

Question

Geography

Kenneth Merritt

2 April, 06:54

Suppose that two asteroids are orbiting the Sun on nearly identical orbits, and they happen to pass close enough to each other to have their orbits altered by this gravitational encounter. If one of the asteroids ends up moving to an orbit that is closer to the Sun, what happens to the other asteroid?

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Answers (1)

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Cassidy · Answer 1

It will end up on an orbit that is farther from the Sun

Explanation:

Total energy must be conserved, so if one asteroid loses energy and moves to a closer orbit, the other has to gain energy and move to a more distant orbit.