Posted by Caer on October 20, 1997 at 09:06:53:
In Reply to: Elongation... posted by Amy Messigian on October 19, 1997 at 23:32:27:
: Please explain greatest elongation.
Greatest elongation is when a planet is
angularly as far away from the sun as its
orbit will allow WHEN viewed from Earth.
Or in other words, when the planet is
as far away from the Sun in our sky as
possible, thus making it easier to observe.
Take a look at fig 2-3 on page 40 in the book -
you can see that the planet at either greatest
elongation is not in front of
or behind the Sun (making it impossible for us
to see it from here on Earth) but out to the side.
Post a Followup