Orbital resonance

ID: orbital-resonance

Orbital resonance by Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-24
An orbital resonance occurs when orbital frequencies satisfy an approximately integer relation, allowing perturbations to accumulate coherently.
Orbital resonance occurs when two orbiting bodies exert regular, periodic gravitational influence on each other due to their orbital frequencies being related by a ratio of small integers. This situation can lead to significant effects on their orbits, including stabilization or destabilization, changes in orbital shape, and alterations in orbital inclination. In a simple example of orbital resonance, if one object completes two orbits in the same time that another object completes one orbit, they are said to be in a 2:1 resonance.

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