Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The evolution of the apparent diameter and phases of Venus. A planetary phase is a certain portion of a planet's area that reflects sunlight as viewed from a given vantage point, as well as the period of time during which it occurs. The phase is determined by the phase angle, which is the angle between the planet, the Sun and the Earth.
[[Category:Chart, diagram and graph templates]] to the <includeonly> section at the bottom of that page. Otherwise, add <noinclude>[[Category:Chart, diagram and graph templates]]</noinclude> to the end of the template code, making sure it starts on the same line as the code's last character.
Diagram showing the eastern and western quadratures of a superior planet like Mars. In spherical astronomy, quadrature is the configuration of a celestial object in which its elongation is a right angle (90 degrees), i.e., the direction of the object as viewed from Earth is perpendicular to the position of the Sun relative to Earth.
Download as PDF; Printable version; In other projects ... Template documentation This page was last edited on 11 June 2024, at 06:53 (UTC). Text is available ...
For some objects, such as the Moon (see lunar phases), Venus and Mercury the phase angle (as seen from the Earth) covers the full 0–180° range. The superior planets cover shorter ranges. For example, for Mars the maximum phase angle is about 45°. For Jupiter, the maximum is 11.1° and for Saturn 6°. [1]
The following templates are used together and (excluding the beginning and end) can be used multiple times in the same list as listed below. {{Orbitbox planet begin}} {{Orbitbox planet}} (only for extrasolar planets and unsure objects [not brown dwarfs]). {{Orbitbox planet hypothetical}} (only for hypothetical planets)
At phase angles exceeding 90° (crescent phase) the brightness falls off especially sharply. The shape of the phase curve indicates a mean slope on the surface of Mercury of about 16°, [1] which is slightly smoother than that of the Moon. Approaching phase angle 0° (fully illuminated phase) the curve rises to a sharp peak.
In the reference frame of the Earth, where the terms were originally used, the inferior planets are Mercury and Venus, while the superior planets are Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Dwarf planets like Ceres or Pluto and most asteroids are 'superior' in the sense that they almost all orbit outside the orbit of Earth.