My Solar System

Topics

• Motion
• Acceleration
• Velocity
• Position
• Gravity

Description

Build your own system of heavenly bodies and watch the gravitational ballet. With this orbit simulator, you can set initial positions, velocities, and masses of 2, 3, or 4 bodies, and then see them orbit each other.

Sample Learning Goals

• Predict the necessary mass, velocity, and distance from the sun of a planet in order for this planet to make a circular orbit around a sun.
• What happens when you increase or decrease the mass of the planet, but keep everything else constant? Does this agree with your prediction?
• What happens to the orbit of the planet when you increase or decrease the magnitude of the velocity of the planet, but keep everything else constant?
• What happens to the planet's orbit when the increase or decrease the initial distance between the planet and the sun?