Terms preceded by an asterisk (*) are discussed in the Boxes.
acceleration |
law of universal gravitation |
air drag |
major axis (of an ellipse) |
aphelion |
mass |
conic section |
neap tides |
conjunction |
Newtonian mechanics |
conservation of energy |
Newton’s first law of motion |
deferent |
Newton’s form of Kepler’s third law |
direct motion |
Newton’s second law of motion |
eccentricity |
Newton’s third law of motion |
ellipse |
Occam’s razor |
elongation |
opposition |
epicycle |
orbital energy |
escape speed |
parabola |
focus (of an ellipse; plural foci) |
parallax |
force |
perihelion |
geocentric model |
period (of a planet) |
gravitational force |
Ptolemaic system |
gravitational potential energy |
retrograde motion |
gravity |
semimajor axis (of an ellipse) |
greatest eastern elongation |
sidereal period |
greatest western elongation |
speed |
heliocentric model |
spring tides |
hyperbola |
superior conjunction |
inferior conjunction |
superior planet |
inferior planet |
synodic period |
Kepler’s first law |
tidal forces |
Kepler’s second law |
universal constant of gravitation |
Kepler’s third law |
velocity |
kinetic energy |
weight |
law of equal areas |