# Eccentricity vector

In celestial mechanics, the eccentricity vector of a Kepler orbit is the vector that points towards the periapsis and has a magnitude equal to the orbit's scalar eccentricity. The magnitude is unitless. For Kepler orbits the eccentricity vector is a constant of motion. Its main use is in the analysis of almost circular orbits, as perturbing (non-Keplerian) forces on an actual orbit will cause the osculating eccentricity vector to change continuously. For the eccentricity and argument of periapsis parameters, eccentricity zero (circular orbit) corresponds to a singularity.

## Calculation

The eccentricity vector $\mathbf{e} \,$ can be calculated[1]

$\mathbf{e} = {\mathbf{v}\times\mathbf{h}\over{\mu}} - {\mathbf{r}\over{\left|\mathbf{r}\right|}}$

where:

or equivalently:

$\mathbf{e} = {\mathbf{\left |v \right |}^2 \mathbf{r} \over {\mu}} - {(\mathbf{r} \cdot \mathbf{v} ) \mathbf{v} \over{\mu}} - {\mathbf{r}\over{\left|\mathbf{r}\right|}}$

## References

1. ^ Cordani, Bruno (2003). The Kepler Problem. Birkhaeuser. p. 22. ISBN 3-7643-6902-7.