Eccentricity of an Orbit

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Eccentricity of an Orbit

 

an element of the orbit of a celestial body characterizing the orbit’s shape. Depending on the value of the eccentricity e, the orbit may be elliptical (e < 1), parabolic (e = 1), or hyperbolic (e > 1). The concept of angle of eccentricity φ, based on the relation e = sin φ, is sometimes introduced instead of the eccentricity for elliptical orbits.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.