2007-04-12 00:49:52 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
No, since 'orbit' refers to the revolution of one body, or mass, about another. However, I suppose you could have a horrendously wide orbit, such that for relatively short distances you could regard its path as a straight line.
This is definitely not an uncommon thing in ordinary math and physics studies, however I cannot say if such an orbit exists.
On relative scales I'm sure it does, but it is like driving around a very gradual curve....for a short time it can appear as a straight line. A curve that starts from your home say, and stretches to the moon.......if you take that straight line and grab it in the middle and pull it so you create an arc, you can pull and pull and not really see the arc in the path. But if you pull enough you will eventually see the arc. Do you see what I mean? It all depends on the length of the path and the proportion of that length that is curnved before you could regard it as significant. Then, while traveling on such an arc......the path from your house to the moon....if you pulled the middle by say 10,000 miles.......small in comparison to the distance from here to the moon....would you actually notice that curve in your travel? I doubt it.......depends on how acute your frame of reference is.
Make any sense?
2007-04-12 01:00:48 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
If a straight line is defined as the shortest distance between two points, then yes. Gravity is a space-time curvature, and an object in orbit follows the shortest path through space-time while orbiting a gravitational object.
2007-04-12 07:56:20 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
first, you must understand what orbit means. it is not possible for an orbit to be in a straight line as...
orbit is something(call it object A) moving around something(call that object B) repeatedly forever, unless object a is a man-made satelite or is a planet which is hit my something(call that UNKNOWN object C) and makes it fly out of orbit.
i thinking what you are trying to say is that when object A revolves around object B in a really straight line with no mistake. that is then possible, but only a small %tage.
2007-04-12 09:00:09 · answer #3 · answered by lao_za_bo 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No .. and orbit means that one body rotates around another under the influence of gravity. That could never happen with a straight line.
2007-04-12 07:55:22 · answer #4 · answered by Gene 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Orbit is a straght line. It is the part of circmference of a circle whose radius is infinite. Orbit is actually a hypothetical straight line bent by gravity.
2007-04-12 07:55:49 · answer #5 · answered by J.SWAMY I ఇ జ స్వామి 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes some kind of comets which have the origin from over the pluto's orbit have some kind of straight orbit but it is so rare for an object to have an straight orbit because most of the comets have parabolic orbits. but it is completely possible and it is proven by mechanics rules
2007-04-12 08:38:44 · answer #6 · answered by suerena 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You`ve asked this "orbit" question about 6 times already , going from a circle to figure 8 to straight line to ...........
Get a life Horatio !! Did you ever see the commercial "this is your brain .............. THIS is your brain on drugs" ???
2007-04-13 16:39:42 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
may appear to be from observation if wide orbit or not circular and elliptical : ), but if straight line then wouldn't be in/an "orbit"
2007-04-12 08:19:43 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
their is no such thing as a straight line in our universe every thing is warped towards something else even the universe itself
2007-04-12 08:10:34 · answer #9 · answered by tarek c 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋