Kepler Orbits 3D Explorer vs Solar System 3D Explorer
Learning why orbits are ellipses and what T^2 = a^3 means takes one page load in the Kepler Orbits 3D Explorer - 0 MB installed, USD 0, no account. The Solar System 3D Explorer shows all eight planets at once but does not isolate Kepler's laws with sweep wedges and an eccentricity slider.
The numbers side by side
| Aspect | Kepler Orbits 3D Explorer | Solar System 3D Explorer |
|---|---|---|
| Install size | 0 MB - runs in the browser | 0 MB - runs in the browser |
| Time to first view | Seconds - one page load | Seconds - one page load |
| Price | USD 0 | USD 0 |
| Works on a phone | Yes - lighter single-orbit scene | Yes - eight planets animated |
Where Kepler Orbits wins
Everything runs locally with WebGL. For teaching Kepler's three laws - ellipses with the Sun at one focus, equal-area sweep wedges, and T^2 proportional to a^3 with Mercury e=0.206 a=0.387 AU, Earth e=0.017 a=1 AU, and Halley e=0.967 a=17.8 AU in the same view - it is the focused route. The eccentricity slider morphs the ellipse live; the Solar System view keeps all planets but does not expose e or sweep wedges.
Where Solar System wins
The Solar System 3D Explorer wins when you need all eight planets orbiting together, comparative sizes, and a speed slider across the whole system. It is a qualitative multi-body visualization - not an N-body integrator either - but it answers "what does the whole solar system look like?" rather than "why is one orbit an ellipse?"
A reasonable rule
Use Kepler Orbits for law-by-law intuition in under a minute; use Solar System for the big-picture layout; use a dedicated N-body simulator for perturbations and mission design. The NASA figures in the panel - Mercury e=0.206, Earth e=0.017, Halley e=0.967 - stay accurate either way.
See when to use Kepler Orbits 3D Explorer for session fit.
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