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Elongation

Elongatinof planet

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48 views4 pages

Elongation

Elongatinof planet

Uploaded by

do4fantum550
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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ELONGATION

The elongation is the angular separation between the Sun and a planet or
other Solar System body as observed from the Earth.

Elongations are measured in degrees eastward or westward of the Sun.

The greatest eastward or westward elongation is the maximum angle


between the Sun and a Solar System body.

Specific names are given to three main values of the elongation:

Conjunction0° The Solar System body lies on the same side of the Earth
as the Sun

Quadrature 90° The Sun, Earth and Solar System body lie at the corners of
a right-angled triangle

Opposition 180° The Solar System body lies on the opposite side of the
Earth as the Sun

The position of an inferior planet at greatest western elongation (position A)


and greatest eastern elongation (position B).

In both cases, the elongation measured is less than 90o.

In astronomy, a planet's elongation is the angular separation between


the Sun and the planet, with Earth as the reference point.

The greatest elongation of a given inferior planet occurs when this planet's
position, in its orbital path around the Sun, is at tangent to the observer on
Earth.

When a planet is at its greatest elongation, it appears farthest from the Sun
as viewed from Earth, so its apparition is also best at that point.

When an inferior planet is visible after sunset, it is near its greatest eastern
elongation.

When an inferior planet is visible before sunrise, it is near its greatest


western elongation.

The angle of the maximum elongation (east or west) for Mercury is between
18° and 28°, while that for Venus is between 45° and 47°.

These values vary because the planetary orbits are elliptical rather than
perfectly circular.
Another factor contributing to this inconsistency is orbital inclination, in
which each planet's orbital plane is slightly tilted relative to a reference
plane, like the ecliptic and invariable planes.

Astronomical tables, forecast when and where the planets reach their next
maximum elongations.

ELONGATION PERIOD

Greatest elongations of a planet happen periodically, with a greatest eastern


elongation followed by a greatest western elongation, and vice versa.

The period depends on the relative angular velocity of Earth and the planet,
as seen from the Sun.

The time it takes to complete this period is the synodic period of the planet.

For example, Venus's year (sidereal period) is 225 days, and Earth's is 365
days.

Thus Venus's synodic period, which gives the time between every two
eastern greatest elongations, is 584 days; this also applies to the western
counterparts.

These values are approximate, because (as mentioned above) the planets do
not have perfectly circular, coplanar orbits.

When a planet is closer to the Sun it moves faster than when it is further
away, so exact determination of the date and time of greatest elongation
requires a much more complicated analysis of orbital mechanics.

ELONGATION OF SUPERIOR PLANETS

Superior planets, dwarf planets and asteroids undergo a different cycle.

After conjunction, such an object's elongation continues to increase until it


approaches a maximum value larger than 90° (impossible with inferior
planets) which is known as opposition and can also be examined as
a heliocentric conjunction with Earth.

This is archetypally very near 180°.


As seen by an observer on the superior planet at opposition, the Earth
appears at conjunction with the Sun.

Technically, the point of opposition can be different from the time and point
of maximum elongation.

Opposition is defined as the moment when the apparent ecliptic longitude of


any such object versus the Sun (seen from earth) differs by (is) 180°; it thus
ignores how much the object differs from the plane of the Earth's orbit.

For example, Pluto, whose orbit is highly inclined to the essentially matching
plane of the planets, has maximum elongation much less than 180° at
opposition.

The six-word term "maximum apparent elongation from the sun" provides a
fuller definition of elongation.

All superior planets are most conspicuous at their oppositions because they
are near, or at, their closest to Earth and are also above the horizon all night.

The variation in magnitude caused by changes in elongation are greater the


closer the planet's orbit is to the Earth's.

Mars' magnitude in particular changes with elongation: it can be as low as


+1.8 when in conjunction near aphelion but at a rare favourable opposition it
is as high as −2.9, which translates to seventy-five times brighter than its
minimum brightness.

As one moves further out, the difference in magnitude that correlates to the
difference in elongation gradually falls.

At opposition, the brightness of Jupiter from Earth ranges 3.3-fold; whereas


that of Uranus – the most distant Solar System body visible to the naked
eye – ranges by 1.7 times.

Since asteroids travel in an orbit not much larger than the Earth's, their
magnitude can vary greatly depending on elongation.

More than a dozen objects in the asteroid belt can be seen with
10×50 binoculars at an average opposition, but of these only Ceres and
Vesta are always above the binocular limit of +9.5 when the objects at their
worst points in their orbital opposition (smallest elongations).

A quadrature occurs when the position of a body (moon or planet) is such


that its elongation is 90° or 270°; i.e. the body-earth-sun angle is 90°.
For MOONS of OTHER PLANETS

Sometimes elongation may instead refer to the angular distance of a moon


of another planet from its central planet, for instance the angular distance
of lo from Jupiter.

Here we can also talk about greatest eastern elongation and greatest
western elongation. In the case of the moons of Uranus, studies often deal
with greatest northern elongation and greatest southern elongation instead,
due to the very high inclination of Uranus' axis of rotation.

DEFINITIONS

ELONGATION OF PLANET OR THE MOON: is the angle at the center of the


earth contained between Sun and the center of the planet or the moon,
measured along the plane of the ecliptic.

CONJUNCTION: A planet or the moon is said to be in conjunction with the sun


when viewed from the Earth when it is in the same direction as the sun (their
celestial longitudes are the same).

OPPOSITION: A planet or the moon is said to be in Opposition with the sun


when viewed from the Earth when it is in the opposite direction to the sun
(their celestial longitudes are 1800 apart).

QUADRATURE: A planet or the moon is said to be in Quadrature when it


Elongation is exactly 90 East or West.

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