The universe is striking in its size and speed. All objects (stars, planets, asteroids, star dust) in it are in constant motion. Many of them have similar trajectories of movement, since the same laws act on them. The movement of the solar system in the galaxy has its own characteristics, which may seem unusual at first glance, although it obeys the same laws as other objects in space.
A Brief History of Astronomy
Earlier, people thought that the Earth was flat and covered with a crystal cap, and the stars, the Sun and the Moon were attached to it. In ancient Greece, thanks to the works of Ptolemy and Aristotle, it was believed that the Earth has the shape of a ball, and all other objects move around it. But already in the 17th century, for the first time, doubt was expressed that the Earth is the center of the world. Copernicus and Galileo, observing the movement of the planets, came to the conclusion that the Earth rotates along with other planets around the Sun.
Modern scientists have gone even further and determined that the Sun is not the center and, in turn, revolves around the center of the Milky Way galaxy. But this turned out to be not entirely accurate. Near-Earth orbiting telescopes have shown that our Galaxy is not the only one. In space, there are billions of galaxies and clusters of stars, clouds of cosmic dust, and the Milky Way galaxy also moves relative to them.
Luminary
The Sun is the main driving force behind the movement of the Solar System in the Galaxy. It moves in an elliptical, almost perfectly circular circle, and pulls the planets and asteroids that make up the system. The sun rotates not only around the center of the Milky Way galaxy, but also around its own axis. Its axis is shifted to the side by 67.5 degrees. Since it (with such an inclination) practically lies on its side, from the outside it seems that the planets that make up the solar system rotate in a vertical, and not in an inclined plane. The Sun rotates counterclockwise around the center of the Galaxy.
It also moves in a vertical direction, periodically (once every 30 million years) either descending or rising relative to the central point. Perhaps such a trajectory of the Solar System in the Galaxy is due to the fact that the core of the Milky Way galaxy rotates around its own axis like a top - periodically leaning in one direction or the other. The sun only repeats these movements, since according to the laws of physics it mustmove strictly along the line of the equator of the central body of the Galaxy, in which, according to scientists, there is a giant black hole. But it is quite possible that such a trajectory is a consequence of the influence of other large objects.
The speed of the Solar System in the Galaxy is equal to the speed of the Sun - about 250 km/s. It makes a complete revolution around the center in 13.5 million years. In the entire history of the existence of the Milky Way galaxy, the Sun has made three complete revolutions.
Laws of motion
When determining the speed of the Solar System around the center of the Galaxy and the planets that make up this system, one should take into account the fact that Newton's laws operate inside the Solar System, in particular the law of attraction or gravity. But when determining the trajectory and speed of the planets around the center of the Galaxy, Einstein's law of relativity also operates. Therefore, the speed of the solar system is equal to the speed of revolution of the sun, since about 98% of the total mass of the system is in it.
Its movement in the Galaxy obeys Kepler's second law. In the same way, the planets of the solar system obey this law. According to him, they all move in the same plane around the center of the Sun.
Toward or away from the center?
In addition to the fact that all stars and planets move around the center of the Galaxy, they also move in other directions. Scientists have long determined that the Milky Way galaxy is expanding, but it is happening more slowly than it should.be. This discrepancy was revealed by computer simulation. The discrepancy puzzled astronomers for a long time, until the existence of black matter was proven, which prevents the Milky Way galaxy from disintegrating. But the movement away from the center continues. That is, the solar system moves not only in a circular orbit, but also shifts in the opposite direction from the center.
Movement in infinite space
Our Galaxy is also moving in space. Scientists have found that it is moving towards the Andromeda nebula and will collide with it in a few billion years. At the same time, the movement of the Solar System in the Galaxy occurs in the same direction, since it is part of the Milky Way, at a speed of 552 km/s. Moreover, its speed of movement towards the Andromeda nebula is much higher than the speed of circulation around the center of the Galaxy.
Why the solar system does not break up
Outer space is not a void. All space around stars and planets is filled with cosmic dust or dark matter that surrounds all galaxies. Large accumulations of cosmic dust are called clouds and nebulae. Often clouds of cosmic dust surround large objects - stars and planets.
The solar system is surrounded by such clouds. They create the effect of an elastic body, which gives it more strength. Another factor that prevents the solar system from disintegrating is a stronggravitational interaction between the Sun and the planets, as well as a large distance to the stars closest to it. So, the closest star to the Sun, Sirius, is at a distance of about 10 million light years. To make it clear how far it is, it is enough to compare the distance from the star to the planets that make up the solar system. For example, the distance from it to the Earth is 8.6 light minutes. Therefore, the interaction of the Sun and other objects within the solar system is much stronger than other stars.
How planets move in the Universe
Planets move in the solar system in two directions: around the Sun and together with it around the center of the Galaxy. All objects that make up this system move in two planes: along the equatorial line and around the center of the Milky Way, repeating all the movements of the star, including those that occur in the vertical plane. At the same time, they move at an angle of 60 degrees relative to the center of the Galaxy. If you look at how the planets and asteroids of the solar system move, then their movement is spiral. The planets move behind and around the sun. A spiral of planets and asteroids rises every 30 million years along with the luminary and descends just as smoothly.
Movement of the planets within the solar system
In order for the picture of the movement of the system in the Galaxy to take on a complete form, one should also consider how fast and in what orbit the planets move around the Sun. All planets move counterclockwise, they also rotate around their own axis counterclockwise, forexcept for Venus. Many have multiple satellites and rings. The farther a planet is from the Sun, the more elongated its orbit is. For example, the dwarf planet Pluto has such an elongated orbit that when passing perihelion it passes closer to it than Uranus. The planets have the following speeds of revolution around the Sun:
- Mercury - 47.36 km/s;
- Venus - 35.02 km/s;
- Earth - 29.02 km/s;
- Mars - 24.13 km/s;
- Jupiter - 13.07 km/s;
- Saturn - 9.69 km/s;
- Uranus 6.81 km/s;
- Neptune - 5.43 km/s.
There is an obvious pattern: the farther the planet is from the star, the slower its movement and the longer the path. Based on this, the spiral of motion of the solar system has the highest speed near the center and the lowest on the outskirts. Until 2006, Pluto was considered the extreme planet (moving speed 4, 67 km / s), but with a change in classification, it was classified as a large asteroid - dwarf planets.
The planets move unevenly, in elongated orbits. The speed of their movement depends on the point at which this or that planet is located. So, at the point of perihelion, the linear speed of movement is higher than at aphelion. Perihelion is the farthest point on the elliptical trajectory of the planet from the Sun, aphelion is the closest to it. Therefore, the speed may vary slightly.
Conclusion
Earth is one of billions of grains of sand wandering in endless space. But its movement is not chaotic, it is subject to certain laws.movement of the solar system. The main force that influences its movement is gravity. It is affected by the forces of two objects - the Sun as the star closest to it and the center of the Galaxy, since the solar system, which includes the planet, revolves around it. If we compare the speed of its movement in the Universe, then it, along with the rest of the stars and planets, is moving in the direction of the Andromeda nebula at a speed of 552 km/s.
