Question

This animation illustrates Kepler's 2nd law of planetary motion. 00:15 00:22 Choose the statement that best describes it. The imaginary line from the Sun to the planet sweeps out equal areas in equal periods of time, so the planet moves slowest when it's furthest from the Sun and fastest when it's closest to the Sun. The imaginary line from the Sun to the planet sweeps out different areas, but in equal periods of time, so the planet moves slowest when it's furthest from the Sun and fastest when it's closest to the Sun. The imaginary line from the Sun to the planet sweeps out equal areas in different periods of time because the planet moves slower when it's furthest from the Sun and fastest when it's closest to the Sun.

Answer 1

Answer: The imaginary line from the Sun to the planet sweeps out equal areas in equal periods of time, so the planet moves slowest when it's furthest from the Sun and fastest when it's closest to the Sun

Explanation:

Kepler’s Laws are three mathematic laws that describe the movement of the planets around the Sun, but it can be generalized for the movement of any body orbiting a bigger one, for example, The Moon orbiting the Earth.

Now, according to Kepler’s Second Law of Planetary motion:

In equal times, the areas swept by the planet in its orbit around the Sun are equal.  

For this to be possible, the speed of the planet must vary. Hence, the planet will move faster near the Sun (perihelion) and move slowly when it is away from the Sun (aphelion).

Hence, the correct statement is:

The imaginary line from the Sun to the planet sweeps out equal areas in equal periods of time, so the planet moves slowest when it's furthest from the Sun and fastest when it's closest to the Sun.