Kepler’s Third Law, formulated by Johannes Kepler in the early 17th century, describes the relationship between the orbital period and the semi-major axis of a planet’s orbit around the Sun. This law is fundamental in understanding the dynamics of celestial bodies within our solar system and beyond.
Where:
- is the orbital period of the planet (time taken to complete one orbit).
- is the gravitational constant.
- is the mass of the central body (usually the Sun).
- is the average distance between the planet and the Sun.