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You are here: Home / Space / What Is a Planet’s Orbital Plane and Why Does Each Planet In the Solar System Have a Different Orbital Plane?

What Is a Planet’s Orbital Plane and Why Does Each Planet In the Solar System Have a Different Orbital Plane?

July 4, 2020 by Karen Hill

A planet’s orbital plane is the flat surface along which it orbits the Sun.

If you sliced an orange in half and put the halves back together with an oval piece of cardboard in between, the orange could represent the Sun and the cardboard could represent a planet’s orbit.

The planet would follow the edge of the oval, never traveling above or below it.

If you sliced the orange at another angle and fit another oval of cardboard in between the halves, that cardboard would represent a different orbital plane.

Every planet orbits the Sun on a different orbital plane because each planet in the solar system was created independent from each other and have unique characteristics.

Related Facts

  • What Is Orbital Tilt and How Do Astronomers Determine the Orbital Tilt of a Planet?
  • What Is the Solar System and How Many Planets Are There In the Solar System?
  • How Big Is the Solar System and What Is the Farthest Identifiable Object In the Solar System?
  • How Old Is the Solar System and How Long After the Sun Did the Planets In the Solar System Form?
  • Why are the orbits of the planets in the solar system arranged in a more or less flat plane?
  • How Many Different Types of Orbital Patterns Do Planets Have and What Are the Different Orbits Called?

Filed Under: Space

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Why Do the Planets In Our Solar System Have Elliptical Orbits and What Is a Planet’s Aphelion and Perihelion?
Next Post: Which Planets In the Solar System Are Known As Gas Giants and How Were the Gas Giants Formed? »

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