The orbit of planets is guided by several factors, only one of which is the gravitational influence of the Sun, though
that is, of course, the strongest. Humans ascribe an inordinate amount of weight, in orbits, to what they perceive as the
existing, or static, motion. They assume the orbit is constant, having been in place since the inception of the Solar
System. They assume the distance from the Sun is maintained by centrifugal force, pulling away from the Sun. They
assume the rotation of planets is a constant, and having no explanation for rotation ascribe it also to motion having
been in place since the inception of the Solar System. Humans view the
and ascribe this result to inappropriate causes. They are wrong on all counts, but as the Solar System does not change
in its motion before their eyes, this is not often up for debate. Rigid minds have no reason to change. Comfortable
theories have no uncomfortable challenges.
The orbiting planets are indeed caught in the Sun's gravitational field, but there is more than gravity and motion at play
in maintaining the distance they do from the Sun. The orbits are scarcely fast enough to create a centrifugal force
strong enough to keep them at a distance from the Sun. Planets do not drift into the Sun, in the main, due to a
repulsion force generated in
toward a larger, a repulsion force is generated between objects, and only becomes strong enough when the mass of the
two objects is sufficient. Do binary Sun's maintain their dance around each other, always at the same distance, by
accident? Tiny objects, such as comets or meteors which regularly crash into the Sun or the orbiting planets, do not
generate a repulsion force sufficient to counteract gravity, due to their tiny mass in proportion to the Sun or planet.
When their paths bring them close, they are caught in the gravity pull.
Orbiting planets are in motion because they are attracted to
factor. Do the stars maintain their distance from each other by accident? For those who doubt that there are
gravitational influences
path that planets assume. Why an ellipse? If the planets were concerned only with the Sun, or with each other, they
would not assume the path they do. Planets assume an elliptical orbit for the same reason that comets
System. They are listening to more than one voice. As to why this voice but not another calls to this planet but not
another, the answer lies in the force of gravity, which is not at all as simple as humans assume. Gravity has many
nuances, depending on composition and distance, and what influences one body toward another may have little effect
on other bodies.
Why do repeating comets, which clearly set into an orbit around the Sun during a good portion of their time within the
Solar System, escape? If one assumes that planets are not escaping because the circular or elliptical orbit is stable, then
why not apply the same logic to comets? Humans do not apply this logic to comets because it doesn't compute, so deal
with the contradiction by falling into magical explanations for the behavior of comets. The answer to this riddle is that
comets, which are assumed to have only
having settled momentarily into an orbit around the Sun, and head toward the one or more other gravitational influence
that dominates their life. Some comets orbit, briefly, these other foci, and some simply get drawn back toward the Sun.
In this case they appear to humans to have a long ellipse orbit.
Elliptical orbits have
influences. In particular, the elliptical orbit of a repeating comet cannot be explained, as when it leaves the Sun it is
heading straight away, and has
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ZetaTalk: Orbits
the Solar System. When out in space, slowing due to the gravitational pull of the Sun to its back, it drifts toward the
other gravitational focus it is sensitive to. There are three voices the repeating comet is listening to at this point.
the Sun behind its back, which is an increasing voice as the comet loses speed due to this same gravitational pull
the second gravitational influence, which it begins curving toward
its momentum away from the Sun
By the time its momentum stops, as stop it does, the comet is positioned such that it will return to the Solar System in
what appears to humans to be an elliptical manner, and not return whence it came. The position of the apparent ellipse
of a repeating comet's orbit is in fact
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ZetaTalk: Elliptical Orbits
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