Definition
Specific relative angular momentum, represented by the symbol, is defined as the cross product of the relative position vector and the relative velocity vector .
where:
- is the relative orbital position vector
- is the relative orbital velocity vector
- is the total angular momentum of the system
- is the reduced mass
The units of are m2s−1.
For unperturbed orbits the vector is always perpendicular to the fixed orbital plane. However, for perturbed orbits the vector is generally not perpendicular to the osculating orbital plane
As usual in physics, the magnitude of the vector quantity is denoted by :
Read more about this topic: Specific Relative Angular Momentum
Famous quotes containing the word definition:
“One definition of man is “an intelligence served by organs.””
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“Mothers often are too easily intimidated by their children’s negative reactions...When the child cries or is unhappy, the mother reads this as meaning that she is a failure. This is why it is so important for a mother to know...that the process of growing up involves by definition things that her child is not going to like. Her job is not to create a bed of roses, but to help him learn how to pick his way through the thorns.”
—Elaine Heffner (20th century)
“It is very hard to give a just definition of love. The most we can say of it is this: that in the soul, it is a desire to rule; in the spirit, it is a sympathy; and in the body, it is but a hidden and subtle desire to possess—after many mysteries—what one loves.”
—François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680)