Orbital mechanics
Orbital Elements
The set of numbers — typically six — that fully specify an orbit and a body's position along it: its size and shape, its orientation in space, and where the body is at a given time. They are the compact language in which every ephemeris and mission trajectory is expressed.
Bodies, frames & concepts
Knowledge connections
- Associated withKepler's Laws of Planetary Motion
- Associated withThe J2000 Epoch
- Associated withSynodic Period
- Associated withpoliastro
- Associated withOrekit
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- NASA JPLJet Propulsion Laboratory / Solar System Dynamics
Orbital data, ephemerides, and small-body parameters for planets, asteroids, and comets.