10/9 Class: Kepler's Laws Simulation

Today we did not have face-to-face class, so our assignment was to explore a simulation to teach us how Kepler's Laws work. Upon arriving at this site I was very confused as to what I was supposed to be doing. It took a few minutes and I explored by clicking on different things, and then I eventually started to understand the point of the simulation. Changing the value of the semi-major axis and eccentricity caused the path of the planet to become closer or further away from the sun and earth. The unit of the semi-major axis is measured in AU, which tells the distance between the earth and sun. There is also a clock that shows the time that has passed in the unit of earth-year. In this simulation I experiemented by measuring the periods of the planet to find a different semi-major axis. Also I clicked the "sweep" button which showed the area swept by the planet. This simulation is a bit confusing at first, but after exploring it for a while I began to enjoy and learn more about Kelper's Laws. I found it to be very interesting and I think that younger student's will also enjoy it.