This computer visualization activity is designed to help upper division undergraduate students compare and contrast potential energy with effective potentials for central force orbits.

Students use a Maple Worksheet or Mathematica Notebook to explore the parameter space for the effective potential, studying the motion of the orbit from plots of effective potential, and examining the effective potential for both attractive and repulsive systems.

The whole class wrap-up discussion summarizes how various physical parameters can affect the shape of an orbit.