Evolution of the orbital elements for objects with high area-to-mass ratios in geostationary transfer orbits |
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Authors: | R. Musci T. SchildknechtT. Flohrer G. Beutler |
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Affiliation: | Astronomical Institute, University of Bern, Sidlerstr. 5, 3012 Bern, Switzerland |
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Abstract: | A new population of uncatalogued objects in geosynchronous Earth orbits (GEO), with a mean motion of about 1 rev/day and eccentricities up to 0.6, has been identified recently. The first observations of this new type of objects were acquired in the framework of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) search for space debris in GEO and the geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) using the ESA 1-m telescope on Tenerife. Earlier studies have postulated that the perturbations due to the solar radiation pressure can lead to such large eccentricities for GEO objects with a high area-to-mass ratio (A/M). The simulations showed that the eccentricities of GEO objects with large A/M exhibit periodic variations with periods of about one year and amplitudes depending on the value of A/M. The findings of these studies could be confirmed by observations from the ESA 1-m telescope on Tenerife. |
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Keywords: | High area-to-mass ratio Geostationary transfer orbit Luni-solar perturbations |
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