EQUATORIAL ORBITS OF A SATELLITE IN THE GRAVITATIONAL FIELD OF A SPHEROID
Abstract
A PRECISE EXPRESSION WAS OBTAINED FOR THE EQUATORIAL ORBITS OF A SMALL SATELLITE MOVING IN THE GRAVITATIONAL FIELD OF A SPHEROID WHICH POSSESSES EQUATORIAL AND ROTATIONAL MASS SYMMETRY. FOR EARTH SATELLITE ORBITS, THE RESULTS CAN BE APPLIED OVER THE ENTIRE RANGE OF VALUES OF THE ECCENTRICITY E OF THE UNPERTURBED ELLIPTIC MOTION. THE RADIAL DISTANCE FROM THE SPHEROID'S CENTER TO THE SATELLITE IS EXPRESSED AS A PERIODIC FUNCTION IN THE TRUE ANOMALY, COMPLETE TO THE SEVENTH ORDER IN A SMALL DIMENSIONLESS PARAMETER EPSILON. FOR BOUND GEOIDAL ORBITS, THE PARAMETER EPSILON IS LESS THAN 0.033 FOR ALL VALUES OF E. THE POTENTIAL USED TO REPRESENT THE SPHEROID INCLUDES THE SIXTH HARMONIC. THE SOLUTION CONTAINS THREE ADJUSTABLE CONSTANTS WHICH PERMIT THE COEFFICIENTS OF THE SECOND, FOURTH, AND SIXTH HARMONICS IN THE POTENTIAL TO BE FITTED TO OBSERVATIONAL DATA
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 01, 1962
- Accession Number
- AD0289684
Entities
People
- G.b. Findley
- P.m. Fitzpatrick
Organizations
- Air Armament Center