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Stewie_Griffin
Guest
I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this but I have a question about orbital mechanics that I can't find the answer too.
I understand that the farther away from the thing you orbit the slower you move. I also understand the mechanics of the hohmann transfer orbit and that if you are in a perfectly circular orbit and you thrust then that position in the orbit will become the periapsis and the opposite position will become the apoapsis, hence putting you in an elliptical orbit.
My question is this: If you are in a highly elliptical orbit around something, will you still move at the same speed at the periapsis as you would if the orbit was perfectly circular and it was only as high as the periapsis of the highly elliptical orbit? I know that in the elliptical orbit you would move slower by the apoapsis than by the periapsis but if you took your speed at the periapsis of the elliptical orbit how would it compare to the circular orbit whose periapsis and apoapsis are both equal to the periapsis of the elliptical orbit?
If it would be the same then would that make it possible for something in LEO to dock with something in a highly elliptical orbit but whose periapsis was in LEO? would the object in the elliptical orbit take the object originally in LEO along for the ride?
Just to be clear I have only basic knowledge of orbital mechanics but I am very interested to get the answer to this question.
Thanks!
I understand that the farther away from the thing you orbit the slower you move. I also understand the mechanics of the hohmann transfer orbit and that if you are in a perfectly circular orbit and you thrust then that position in the orbit will become the periapsis and the opposite position will become the apoapsis, hence putting you in an elliptical orbit.
My question is this: If you are in a highly elliptical orbit around something, will you still move at the same speed at the periapsis as you would if the orbit was perfectly circular and it was only as high as the periapsis of the highly elliptical orbit? I know that in the elliptical orbit you would move slower by the apoapsis than by the periapsis but if you took your speed at the periapsis of the elliptical orbit how would it compare to the circular orbit whose periapsis and apoapsis are both equal to the periapsis of the elliptical orbit?
If it would be the same then would that make it possible for something in LEO to dock with something in a highly elliptical orbit but whose periapsis was in LEO? would the object in the elliptical orbit take the object originally in LEO along for the ride?
Just to be clear I have only basic knowledge of orbital mechanics but I am very interested to get the answer to this question.
Thanks!