Ether (Space); Force and energy; Gravitation; Matter
The earth's rotation on its axis remains unaltered during this
increasing orbital velocity, consequently the aetherial currents
generated by the earth will remain uniform, and the moon will still be
circled round the earth in the same period of about 28 days. But while
the time of the moon's revolution remains unaltered, the orbit that she
has to describe is now increased owing to the increased orbital
velocity of its central body, with the result, that by the time the
earth gets to that part of its orbit represented by point _D_, it is
then two millions of miles nearer to the sun than at point _C_, and will
be circled round the sun by the aetherial currents at a much greater
rate. Therefore, the eccentricity of the moon's orbit is increased just
in proportion to the increased velocity of the earth in its orbit round
the sun. By the time the earth has arrived at point _A_, when it is only
a distance of about 91 millions of miles from the sun, it reaches the
minimum distance, and is circled round at the decreased distance with
its maximum velocity.
At this point, therefore, the eccentricity of the orbit of the moon will
be at its greatest, and, if one revolution could be represented by an
ellipse _E_ _G_ _H_, then that ellipse would be more elongated, and the
difference between the two axes of the moon's orbit would be greater
than at any other point of the earth's orbit.
Thus it can readily be seen that the eccentricity of the moon's orbit is
primarily due to the different velocities of the central body, in this
case the earth, as that body is carried round its central body, the sun.
Where the earth's motion is slowest, there the eccentricity of the
moon's orbit will be at a minimum; but where the earth's velocity is
greatest, there the eccentricity of the moon's orbit will be at a
maximum.
Between this minimum and maximum velocity of the earth in its orbit
there is the constant increase or decrease in the eccentricity of the
orbit of the moon; the eccentricity increasing as the orbital velocity
of the central body increases, and decreasing as the orbital velocity of
the earth decreases. A further fact has, however, to be taken into
consideration, which is that the primary body about which the moon
revolves is itself subject to the same eccentricity of its orbit, and
for similar reasons, as we shall see later on. So that when the
eccentricity of the earth's orbit is at its greatest, then the moon's
orbit will possess its greatest possible eccentricity, and as the
eccentricity of the earth's orbit is dependent upon the orbital velocity
of the sun, so the greatest possible eccentricity of the moon's orbit is
indirectly connected and associated with the sun's motion through space,
which motion will now be considered.
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