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Computer Aided Ballistic Orbit Classification Around Small Bodies

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Abstract

Orbital dynamics around small bodies are as varied as the shapes and dynamical states of these bodies. While various classes of orbits have been analyzed in detail, the global overview of relevant ballistic orbits at particular bodies is not easily computed or organized. Yet, correctly categorizing these orbits will ease their future use in the overall trajectory design process. This paper overviews methods that have been used to organize orbits, focusing on periodic orbits in particular, and introduces new methods based on clustering approaches.

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Notes

  1. Numbers in the table are rounded to the 3rd decimal point.

  2. The use of the period in particular is relevant in avoiding the intersection of period doubling families when they reduce to an orbit with apparently 1/2 of the period.

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Acknowledgments

This research has been sponsored by the AMMOS technology development task. A portion of the research presented in this paper has been carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under a contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pr. Systems Engineer, a.i.solutions, Inc., 4500 Forbes Blvd., Suite 300, Lanham, MD, 20706, USA

    Benjamin F. Villac

  2. Technologist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, M/S 301-121, Pasadena, CA, 91109, USA

    Rodney L. Anderson

  3. Systems Engineer, a.i.solutions, Inc., NASA GSFC, B28 N278, Greenbelt, MD, 20771, USA

    Alex J. Pini

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  1. Benjamin F. Villac
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Correspondence to Benjamin F. Villac.

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Villac, B.F., Anderson, R.L. & Pini, A.J. Computer Aided Ballistic Orbit Classification Around Small Bodies. J of Astronaut Sci 63, 175–205 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40295-016-0089-x

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