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GCSE Physics · key term
A circular path around another body in which the orbiting object stays at a constant distance from its centre.
Used by OCR
Specification P8.3g · Paper 2 (Foundation), Paper 4 (Higher)
Revise: Stable orbitsIn a stable circular orbit, that inward pull continually bends the object's path while its distance from the centre stays constant. At any one orbital radius, the object needs a particular speed for gravity to bend its path into that circle.
For the same central body, link a faster stable circular orbit to a smaller radius, and a slower one to a larger radius.
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