The perihelion and aphelion are the points on the orbit closest to and farthest from the sun, respectively (Figure 8). The distance from the sun at the perihelion is denoted r_per and the speed at this point is denoted v_per. Similarly, we write r_ap and v_ap for the distance and speed at the aphelion. The semimajor axis is denoted a.

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Aphelion Vap F2 r y F Vper a Semimajor axis X Perihelion