Circular orbit

A circular orbit is the orbit with a fixed distance around the barycenter, that is, in the shape of a circle. A circular orbit is the orbit with a fixed distance around the barycenter, that is, in the shape of a circle. Below we consider a circular orbit in astrodynamics or celestial mechanics under standard assumptions. Here the centripetal force is the gravitational force, and the axis mentioned above is the line through the center of the central mass perpendicular to the plane of motion. In this case, not only the distance, but also the speed, angular speed, potential and kinetic energy are constant. There is no periapsis or apoapsis. This orbit has no radial version. Transverse acceleration (perpendicular to velocity) causes change in direction. If it is constant in magnitude and changing in direction with the velocity, we get a circular motion. For this centripetal acceleration we have