Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2025 / iii / Paper 316 / 2 / i / Solution

Write $k=\mu (1-\beta )$. Taking the cross product of the equation of motion with $\mathbf{r}$ givesSince $\mathbf{r}\cdot \mathbf{h}=0$ at every time, the orbit lies in the fixed plane perpendicular to the conserved specific angular momentum $\mathbf{h}$. Taking the inner product with $\dot{\mathbf{r}}$ gives the conserved specific orbital energyFor $\beta >1$, the effective inverse-square force is repulsive and the potential term is positive.