All articles tagged with #barycenter
The Earth doesn't technically orbit the Sun's center but rather orbits a common center of mass called the barycenter, which is often outside the Sun due to the gravitational influence of massive planets like Jupiter, making the actual orbital dynamics more complex than simplified diagrams suggest.
None of Pluto's five moons actually orbit the dwarf planet, but instead orbit a point outside of Pluto due to the gravitational influence of Charon, its largest moon. The barycenter of the system is actually 960 kilometers from the surface of Pluto, and the four smaller moons have almost perfect patterns in their orbits around the barycenter. This complex dance is a successful cosmic ballet.