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The ancient Greek astronomer Hipparchus noted the apsidal precession of the Moon's orbit (as the revolution of the Moon's apogee with a period of approximately 8.85 years); [4] it is corrected for in the Antikythera Mechanism (circa 80 BCE) (with the supposed value of 8.88 years per full cycle, correct to within 0.34% of current measurements). [5]
The apsides refer to the farthest (2) and nearest (3) points reached by an orbiting planetary body (2 and 3) with respect to a primary, or host, body (1). An apsis (from Ancient Greek ἁψίς (hapsís) 'arch, vault'; pl. apsides / ˈ æ p s ɪ ˌ d iː z / AP-sih-deez) [1] [2] is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body.
aphelion The point at which a body orbiting the Earth's Sun is furthest from the Sun. Contrast perihelion. apoapsis The point at which an orbiting body is furthest from its primary. Contrast periapsis. apogee The point at which a body orbiting the Earth (such as the Moon or an artificial satellite) is furthest from the Earth. Contrast perigee.
The term perihelion comes from the ancient Greek "peri," which means "close," and "helios," meaning the sun. Conversely, aphelion comes from combining "apo," meaning "away from," with "helios."
The approximate perihelion (q) and aphelion (Q) dates are marked for their respective orbits. Polar view of Quaoar's orbit (yellow) along with various other large Kuiper belt objects. Quaoar orbits the Sun at an average distance of 43.7 AU (6.54 billion km; 4.06 billion mi), taking 288.8 years to complete one full orbit around the Sun.
Near-Earth asteroids are divided into groups based on their semi-major axis (a), perihelion distance (q), and aphelion distance (Q): [2] [26] The Atiras or Apoheles have orbits strictly inside Earth's orbit: an Atira asteroid's aphelion distance (Q) is smaller than Earth's perihelion distance (0.983 AU).
Log-log plot of period T vs semi-major axis a (average of aphelion and perihelion) of some Solar System orbits (crosses denoting Kepler's values) showing that a³/T² is constant (green line) For comparison, here are modern estimates: [citation needed]
This is a list of Solar System objects by greatest aphelion or the greatest distance from the Sun that the orbit could take it if the Sun and object were the only objects in the universe. It is implied that the object is orbiting the Sun in a two-body solution without the influence of the planets, passing stars, or the galaxy.