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19 votes
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According to Kepler's laws of planetary motion

the ratio of the mean radius of the orbit of a
planet cubed to the period of revolution of
the planet squared is constant for all planets
orbiting the Sun. Sketch a graph representing
this relationship.

User John Kealy
by
2.5k points

1 Answer

14 votes
14 votes

Final answer:

Kepler's third law states that the orbital period squared is directly proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis of the orbit. This relationship can be represented by the equation P^2 = k * a^3, where P is the orbital period and a is the semi-major axis of the orbit.

Step-by-step explanation:

Kepler's third law states that the square of a planet's orbital period is directly proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis of its orbit. In equation form, this can be written as:

P^2 = k * a^3

Where P is the orbital period and a is the semi-major axis of the orbit. The constant k represents a proportionality constant that is the same for all planets orbiting the Sun.

When plotted on a graph, this relationship between P^2 and a^3 will result in a straight line with a positive slope.

User Populus
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