Asymptotic solution for the two-body problem with constant tangential thrust acceleration

Claudio Bombardelli (1) , Giulio Baù (2) , Jesus Peláez (1)

1 ETSI Aeronauticos
2 CISAS - Centro di Ateneo di Studi e Attività Spaziali “Giuseppe Colombo”

An analytical solution of the two body problem perturbed by a constant tangential acceleration is derived with the aid of perturbation theory. The solution, which is valid for circular and elliptic orbits with generic eccentricity, describes the instantaneous time variation of all orbital elements. A comparison with high-accuracy numerical results shows that the analytical method can be effectively applied to multiple-revolution low-thrust orbit transfer around planets and in interplanetary space with negligible error.

Mots clés: Two body problem; Tangential thrust; Asymptotic expansion; Orbit transfer

Claudio Bombardelli, Giulio Baù, Jesus Peláez. Asymptotic solution for the two-body problem with constant tangential thrust acceleration. Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy, 2011, 110 (3), pp.239-256. ⟨10.1007/s10569-011-9353-3⟩. ⟨hal-00653184⟩