Elliptical vs Circular Orbit
http://web.archive.org/web/20190211162913/http://www.analemma.com/Graphics/eccentricity/CvE_Part1.mov

Bob Urschel, analemma.com


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Find the contrast between a highly exaggerated earth elliptical orbit and circular orbit depicted in .mov format. It should be mentioned to students that in reality the earth's elliptical orbit around the sun would hardly be noticeable if viewed from this distance. Taken alone, the video could unfortunately perpetuate the misconception that earth sun distance is responsible for the seasons. Still, the video is useful for pointing out that the earth's speed around the sun is not constant, with the earth moving fastest in January and slowest in July. This phenomenon helps explain why summer is longer in the Northern Hemisphere and for the analemma. The animation can be paused and rewound to emphasize important points.

This resource is referenced here:Keywords: seasons, orbit