AU is a unit of distance. If the orbital speed of Earth at aphelion is v, what is the orbital speed of Earth at perihelion?

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The earth moves about the sun in an elliptical orbit where angular momentum
about the sun is conserved. Earth's distance from the sun ranges from 0.983 AU
(at perihelion, the closest point) to 1.017 AU (at aphelion, the farthest point). The
AU is a unit of distance. If the orbital speed of Earth at aphelion is v, what is the
orbital speed of Earth at perihelion?
Transcribed Image Text:The earth moves about the sun in an elliptical orbit where angular momentum about the sun is conserved. Earth's distance from the sun ranges from 0.983 AU (at perihelion, the closest point) to 1.017 AU (at aphelion, the farthest point). The AU is a unit of distance. If the orbital speed of Earth at aphelion is v, what is the orbital speed of Earth at perihelion?
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Step 1

Angular momentum of earth about sun is conserved which means that at any point in the path of earth angular momentum is same.

Angular momentum of an object about a point is given as 

L = mvr

where m is the mass of object , v is its speed and r is the distance from point

 

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