KIDS TRIVIA

Detailed explanation-1: -Earth’s orbit is not a perfect circle. It is elliptical, or slightly oval-shaped. This means there is one point in the orbit where Earth is closest to the Sun, and another where Earth is farthest from the Sun.

Detailed explanation-2: -Learners will first use elements of the orbit of Earth and Pluto and an apparatus using string, a pencil, and pushpins to accurately draw an ellipse, showing the nearly circular shape of the orbits of Earth and Pluto.

Detailed explanation-3: -The elliptical nature of Earth’s orbit is due entirely to the original force which tossed it away from the solar disc (now the sun). If the momentum of this toss had been greater, the Earth’s orbit would have been more highly elliptical, or it might have been tossed completely out of the solar system forever.

Detailed explanation-4: -Given that the sun is almost perfectly spherical (not oblate), why do planets orbit the sun in an ellipse?