Classical Orbit Exercises

 

Gravitational Scattering shows a variety of examples of unbounded scattering of an object in the gravitational field of a more massive object. The impact parameter varies in each simulation.

 

~~1. In each of the animations, the scattered mass begins far from the more massive scattering center with the same velocity and hence energy.  Verify that the impact parameter, b, is related to Θ, the total angle scattered, as
 

b = (GmM/2E)·cot(Θ/2).