Particular solutions of the singly averaged Hill problem

We consider the case of averaging the perturbing function of the Hill problem over the fastest variable, the mean anomaly of the satellite. In integrable special cases, we found solutions to the evolutionary system of equations in elements.     

On the periodically evolving orbits in the singly averaged Hill problem

We continue to analyze the periodic solutions of the singly averaged Hill problem. We have numerically constructed the families of solutions that correspond to periodically evolving satellite orbits for arbitrary initial values of their eccentricities and inclinations to the plane of motion of the perturbing body. The solutions obtained are compared with the numerical solutions of the rigorous (nonaveraged) equations of the restricted circular three-body problem. In particular, we have constructed a periodically evolving orbit for which the well-known Lidov-Kozai mechanism manifests itself, just as in the doubly averaged problem.     

On the Hill stability in the general problem of three finite bodies

We construct zero-kinetic-energy surfaces and determine the regions where motion is possible. We show that for bodies with finite sizes, there are bounded regions of space within which a three-body system never breaks up. The Hill stability criterion is established.     

Hill stability in the many-body problem

We established a criterion for the Hill stability of motions in the problem of many spherical bodies with a spherical density distribution. The region of Hill stability was determined. The sizes of this region are comparable to the total volume of all of the bodies in the system, which sharply increases the probability of mutual collisions. This result may be considered as a confirmation that a supermassive core can be formed at the center of a globular star cluster. The motions in the n-body problem are shown to be unstable according to Hill.     

Sundman surfaces and Hill stability in the three-body problem

Using the famous Sundman inequality, we have constructed for the first time the surfaces for the general three-body problem that we suggest calling Sundman surfaces. These surfaces are a generalization of the widely known Hill surfaces in the restricted circular three-body problem. The Sundman surfaces are constructed in a rectangular coordinate system that uses the mutual distances between the bodies as the Cartesian rectangular coordinates. The singular points of the family of these surfaces have been determined. The possible and impossible regions of motion of the bodies have been constructed in the space of mutual distances. We have shown the existence of Hill stable motions and established sufficient criteria for Hill stability of motions. Some of the astronomical applications are considered.     

Stability of periodic solutions for Hill’s averaged problem with allowance for planetary oblateness

We analyze the stability of periodic solutions for Hill’s double-averaged problem by taking into account a central planet’s oblateness. They are generated by steady-state solutions that are stable in the linear approximation. By numerically calculating the monodromy matrix of variational equations, we plot its trace against the integral of the problem—an averaged perturbing function, for two model systems, [(Sun + Moon)-Earth-satellite] and (Sun-Uranus-satellite). We roughly estimate the ranges of values for the parameters of satellite orbits corresponding to periodic solutions of the evolutionary system that are stable in the linear approximation.     

Hill stability of the planar three-body problem: General and restricted cases

The equations of motion of the planar three-body problem split into two parts, called an external part and an internal part. When the third mass approaches zero, the first part tends to the equations of the Kepler motion of the primaries and the second part to the equations of motion of the restricted problem.We discuss the Hill stability from these equations of motion and the energy integral. In particular, the Jacobi integral for the circular restricted problem is seen as an infinitesimal-mass-order term of the Sundman function in this context.     

On the effect of the eccentricity of a planetary orbit on the stability of satellite orbits

The effect of the eccentricity of a planet’s orbit on the stability of the orbits of its satellites is studied. The model used is the elliptic Hill case of the planar restricted three-body problem. The linear stability of all the known families of periodic orbits of the problem is computed. No stable orbits are found, the majority of them possessing one or two pairs of real eigenvalues of the monodromy matrix, while a part of a family with complex instability is found. Two families of periodic orbits, bifurcating from the Lagrangian points L₁, L₂ of the corresponding circular case are found analytically. These orbits are very unstable and the determination of their stability coefficients is not accurate, so we compute the largest Liapunov exponent in their vicinity. In all cases these exponents are positive, indicating the existence of chaotic motions     

Periodic solutions of the singly averaged hill problem

Based on the ideas of Lyapunov’s method, we construct a family of symmetric periodic solutions of the Hill problem averaged over the motion of a zero-mass point (a satellite). The low eccentricity of the satellite orbit and the sine of its inclination to the plane of motion of the perturbing body are parameters of the family. We compare the analytical solution with numerical solutions of the averaged evolutionary system and the rigorous (nonaveraged) equations of the restricted circular three-body problem.     

The planar Hill problem with oblate primary

The regularized equations of motion of the planar Hill problem which includes the effect of the oblateness of the larger primary body, is presented. Using the Levi-Civita coordinate transformation as well as the corresponding time transformation, we obtain a simple regularized polynomial Hamiltonian of the dynamical system that corresponds to that of two uncoupled harmonic oscillators perturbed by polynomial terms. The relations between the synodic and regularized variables are also given. The convenient numerical computations of the regularized equations of motion, allow derivation of a map of the group of families of simple-periodic orbits, free of collision cases, of both the classical and the Hill problem with oblateness. The horizontal stability of the families is calculated and we determine series of horizontally critical symmetric periodic orbits of the basic families g and g'. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The Lagrange-Jacobi equation in the finite-size many-body problem

We determine the values of the barycentric energy constant that necessarily result in collisions between bodies. The standard Hill stability regions in the problem of four or more bodies are shown to be located inside the regions where collisions are inevitable. Only in the problem of three finite bodies is part of the Hill stability region preserved where the bodies can move without colliding with one another. We point out possible astronomical applications of our results.     

A criterion for the linear stability of theequilibrium points in the perturbed restricted three-body problem and its application in Robe''s problem

A criterion for the linear stability of the equilibrium points in the perturbed restricted three-body problem is given. This criterion is related only to the coefficients of the characteristic equation of the tangent map of an equilibrium point, and this is convenient to use. With this criterion, we have discussed the linear stability of the equilibrium points in the Robe problem under the perturbation of a drag force, derived the linearly stable region of the equilibrium point in the perturbed Robe's problem with the drag given by Hallen et al., and improved as well the results obtained by Giordano et al.     

Hill stability of a triple system with an inner binary of large mass ratio

We determine the maximum dimensionless pericentre distance a third body can have to the barycentre of an extreme mass ratio binary, beyond which no exchange or ejection of any of the binary components can occur. We calculate this maximum distance, q '/ a , where q ' is the pericentre of the third mass to the binary barycentre and a is the semimajor axis of the binary, as a function of the critical value of   L ²  E   of the system, where L is the magnitude of the angular momentum vector and E is the total energy of the system. The critical value is obtained by calculating   L ²  E   for the central configuration of the system at the collinear Lagrangian points. In our case we can make approximations for the system when one of the masses is small. We compare the calculated values of the pericentre distance with numerical scattering experiments as a function of the eccentricity of the inner orbit, e , the mutual inclination i and the eccentricity of the outer orbit, e '. These show that the maximum observed value of   q '/ a   is indeed the critical q '/ a , as expected. However, when   e '→1  , the maximum observed value of q '/ a is equal to the critical value calculated when   e '=0  , which is contrary to the theory, which predicts exchange distances several orders of magnitude larger for nearly parabolic orbits. This does not occur because changes in the binding energy of the binary are exponentially small for distant, nearly parabolic encounters.     

Periodic solutions near a central libration point in the problem of the motion of a star inside an elliptical galaxy

We consider the three-dimensional problem of the motion of a star inside an inhomogeneous rotating elliptical galaxy with a homothetic density distribution. We construct and analyze the periodic solutions near a central libration point by using Lyapunov’s method.     

The elliptical three-body problem. Triangular solution

The restricted three-body problem with eccentric orbit is reviewed and the positions of the triangular Lagrangian points (L₄, L₅) are determined. It is put in evidence the fact the fact L₄ and L₅ are situated at the corners of an isoscales triangle: AB = BC = 1 − e²/)1 + e cos ν )4/3 and AC = 1 − e²/)1 + e cos ν )     

Effect of perturbation of coriolis and centrifugal forces on the location and linear stability of the libration points in the robe problem

The locations and linear stability of the main libration points in Robe's restricted three-body problem under perturbed Coriolis and centrifugal forces are investigated. The perturbed locations of these points are given. The perturbation magnitude of their locations and linear stability are estimated. The results obtained by Shrivastava and Garain^[10] are improved.     

About the Hill stability of extrasolar planets in stellar binary systems

We use a three dimensional generalization of Szebehely’s invariant relation obtained by us (Makó and Szenkovits, Celest. Mech. Dyn. Astron. 90, 51, 2004) in the elliptic restricted three-body problem, to establish more accurate criterion of the Hill stability. By using this criterion, the Hill stability of four extrasolar planets (γ Cephei Ab, Gliese 86 Ab, HD 41004 Ab and HD 41004 Bb) is investigated.     

Multiple resonance in one problem of the stability of the motion of a satellite relative to the center of mass

We investigate the stability of the periodic motion of a satellite, a rigid body, relative to the center of mass in a central Newtonian gravitational field in an elliptical orbit. The orbital eccentricity is assumed to be low. In a circular orbit, this periodic motion transforms into the well-known motion called hyperboloidal precession (the symmetry axis of the satellite occupies a fixed position in the plane perpendicular to the radius vector of the center of mass relative to the attractive center and describes a hyperboloidal surface in absolute space, with the satellite rotating around the symmetry axis at a constant angular velocity). We consider the case where the parameters of the problem are close to their values at which a multiple parametric resonance takes place (the frequencies of the small oscillations of the satellite’s symmetry axis are related by several second-order resonance relations). We have found the instability and stability regions in the first (linear) approximation at low eccentricities.     

Periodic orbits in the general three-body problem and the relationship between them

We study the regions of finite motions in the vicinity of three simple stable periodic orbits in the general problem of three equal-mass bodies with a zero angular momentum. Their distinctive feature is that one of the moving bodies periodically passes through the center of mass of the triple system. We consider the dynamical evolution of plane nonrotating triple systems for which the initial conditions are specified in such a way that one of the bodies is located at the center of mass of the triple system. The initial conditions can then be specified by three parameters: the virial coefficient k and the two angles, φ₁ and φ₂, that characterize the orientation of the velocity vectors for the bodies. We scanned the region of variation in these parameters k∈(0, 1); φ₁, φ₂∈(0, π) at steps of δk=0.01; δφ₁=δφ₂=1° and identified the regions of finite motions surrounding the periodic orbits. These regions are isolated from one another in the space of parameters (k, φ₁, φ₂). There are bridges that correspond to unstable orbits with long lifetimes between the regions. During the evolution of these metastable systems, the phase trajectory can “stick” to the vicinity of one of the periodic orbits or move from one vicinity to another. The evolution of metastable systems ends with their breakup.