Kepler's 3^rd Law: P² = a³

A graph showing Kepler's 3rd law. Click on image for full size (7K GIF) Kepler's 3rd law is a mathematical formula. It means that if you know how long it takes a planet to go around the Sun (P), then you can determine that planet's distance from the Sun (a). This formula also tells us that planets far away from the Sun take longer to go around the Sun than those that are close to the Sun. Check out the table of orbital data for the planets. You will notice that Venus' orbital period (P) is longer than Mercury's, and the Earth's period is longer than Venus', and Mars' period is longer than Earth's...

Last modified prior to September, 2000 by the Windows Team

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