Orbital facts for kids

Orbital means something that has to do with an orbit. In science, an orbit is the curved path an object takes as it moves around another object because of gravity. Think of the Earth orbiting the Sun, or the Moon orbiting the Earth.

But the word "orbital" can also mean other things, especially in chemistry and physics. It can describe the space where tiny particles like electrons are most likely to be found around an atom or a molecule.

What is an Orbit?

An orbit is like a special path that one object follows around another object in space. This happens because of a force called gravity. Gravity is what pulls things towards each other. For example, the Earth is pulled by the Sun's gravity, which makes it travel in a big circle (or ellipse) around the Sun.

Objects in Orbit

Many things in space are in orbit.

• Planets orbit stars. Our Earth orbits the Sun.
• Moons orbit planets. The Moon orbits Earth.
• Satellites orbit Earth. These can be natural, like the Moon, or artificial, like the ones we send into space for TV or weather.

Why Don't Things Fall?

You might wonder why the Moon doesn't fall into Earth, or why Earth doesn't fall into the Sun. It's because they are also moving very fast sideways. This sideways motion, combined with the pull of gravity, creates a balance that keeps them in a steady path around the larger object. It's like swinging a ball on a string around your head; the string pulls the ball in, but its speed keeps it from falling.

Types of Orbital Paths

Orbits are not always perfect circles. They can be different shapes and sizes.

Orbital Period

The orbital period is the time it takes for an object to complete one full trip around another object. For example, Earth's orbital period around the Sun is about 365 days, which is one year. The Moon's orbital period around Earth is about 27 days.

Orbital Speed

Orbital speed is how fast an object is moving along its orbit. Objects closer to the thing they are orbiting usually move faster. For instance, a satellite orbiting close to Earth moves much faster than the Moon does.

Orbital Eccentricity

Orbital eccentricity describes how "stretched out" an orbit is.

• An orbit with zero eccentricity is a perfect circle.
• An orbit with a high eccentricity is more like a long, thin oval shape, called an ellipse.
• Most planets have orbits that are slightly eccentric, meaning they are not perfect circles but are close to them.

Orbital Plane

The orbital plane is the flat, imaginary surface that an object's orbit lies on. Imagine a flat dinner plate; if a planet orbits a star, its path would be on that plate. Different planets in our solar system orbit the Sun on slightly different planes, but they are all quite close to each other.

Orbital in Chemistry

In chemistry, "orbital" has a different meaning. It refers to a region of space around an atom or molecule where an electron is most likely to be found. Electrons are tiny particles that move very fast around the center of an atom, called the nucleus.

Atomic Orbitals

An atomic orbital describes the possible locations of an electron within an atom. These orbitals have different shapes and sizes, like spheres or dumbbells. Each orbital can hold a maximum of two electrons. Scientists use these orbitals to understand how atoms bond together.

Molecular Orbitals

When atoms join together to form a molecule, their atomic orbitals combine to create new molecular orbitals. These molecular orbitals describe where electrons are located within the entire molecule. They help explain how chemical bonds form and why molecules have certain shapes and properties.

Frontier Orbitals

Frontier orbitals are a special type of molecular orbital that are very important in understanding how chemical reactions happen.

• HOMO stands for Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital. This is the orbital that has the highest energy and is currently filled with electrons.
• LUMO stands for Lowest Unoccupied Molecular Orbital. This is the orbital that has the lowest energy but does not have any electrons in it.

These orbitals are called "frontier" because they are at the "edge" of where electrons are found and where they could go. They play a big role in how molecules react with each other.