The Kepler problem
The Kepler problem
The often unstated zero-th law of Kepler is that a planetary orbit lies in a plane. This follows from the conservation of the direction of orbital angular momentum. The next in logical order is the law of areas, saying that the normal component of angular momentum is conserved as well. That the orbits are ellipses is a special feature of the inverse square law force. The third law can be thought of as the inspiration for this hypothesis.
Keywords: kepler, planetary orbit, law of areas, angular momentum, inverse square law force
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