Detailed Re-derivation of Keplerian Orbit and Kaula's Satellite Orbit Perturbation Theory

Does orbit-averaged theory require a scale separation between periodic orbit size and perturbation correlation length?

Canonical perturbation theory shows that orbit-averaged theory only requires the time-scale separation between equilibrium and perturbed motions and verifies the conventional concept that orbit averaging effects greatly reduce the transport of energetic particles by microturbulence in tokamak. Thereafter, a recent claim [Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 075004 (2009); 107, 239502 (2011)] of the orbit-aver...

Performance of perturbation methods on orbit prediction

In this paper we analyze briefly the use of two classical perturbation methods vs. the formulation using cartesian coordinates in the numerical integration of satellite orbits. In particular, we compare with the variation-of-parameters (VOP) and Encke’s methods. The numerical tests performed with a realistic Earth potential model and using a well-recognized numerical ODE integrator (dop853) per...

Periodic Orbit Theory

Circumnutations of sunflower hypocotyls in satellite orbit.

The principal objective of the research reported here was to determine whether a plant's periodic growth oscillations, called circumnutations, would persist in the absence of a significant gravitational or inertial force. The definitive experiment was made possible by access to the condition of protracted near weightlessness in an earth satellite. The experiment, performed during the first fl...

On the orbit of the LARES satellite

This paper is motivated by the recent possibility to find an inexpensive launching vehicle for the LARES satellite, however at an altitude much lower than originally planned for the LAGEOS III/LARES satellite. We present here a preliminary error analysis corresponding to a lower, quasi-polar, orbit, in particular we analyze the effect on the LARES node of the Earth’s static gravitational field,...