Out of aphelion and perihelion,where is the speed of the earth more and why?

Vedclass pdf generator app on play store
Vedclass iOS app on app store
(N/A) Aphelion is the position of the earth where it is at the maximum distance from the sun,while perihelion is the position where it is at the minimum distance from the sun.
According to Kepler's second law of planetary motion,the areal velocity of a planet remains constant. This implies that the angular momentum of the planet is conserved.
The angular momentum $L$ is given by $L = mvr \sin(\theta)$. At perihelion and aphelion,the velocity vector is perpendicular to the radius vector,so $\theta = 90^{\circ}$ and $\sin(90^{\circ}) = 1$.
Thus,$L = mvr$,which means $v \propto 1/r$.
Since the distance $r$ is minimum at perihelion,the speed $v$ of the earth is maximum at perihelion compared to aphelion.

Explore More

Similar Questions

The distance of a planet from the sun is $5$ times the distance between the earth and the sun. The time period of the planet is

The period of revolution of planet $A$ around the sun is $8$ times that of $B$. The distance of $A$ from the sun is how many times greater than that of $B$ from the sun?

India's Mangalyaan was sent to Mars by launching it into a transfer orbit $EOM$ around the Sun. It leaves the Earth at $E$ and meets Mars at $M$. If the semi-major axis of Earth's orbit is $a_e = 1.5 \times 10^{11} \, m$ and that of Mars' orbit is $a_m = 2.28 \times 10^{11} \, m$, using Kepler's laws, estimate the time taken for Mangalyaan to reach Mars from Earth in days.

Let the speed of the planet at the perihelion $P$ in the figure be $v_{P}$ and the Sun-planet distance $SP$ be $r_{P}$. Relate $\{r_{P}, v_{P}\}$ to the corresponding quantities at the aphelion $\{r_{A}, v_{A}\}$. Will the planet take equal times to traverse $BAC$ and $CPB$?

Does the speed of a planet remain constant in its orbit?

Vedclass Products

For Students

Vedclass Test Series

Mock tests in real JEE/NEET style with performance analysis. 5-day free trial.

Start Free Trial
For Teachers

Exam Paper Generator

Generate Set A/B/C/D exam papers from 7.5L+ questions in 2 minutes. 3 chapters free.

Try Free
For Institutes

Online Exam Module

Live online exams with unlimited students, 360° analytics & white-label branding.

See Demo